: 


«       ^_jS  i 


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f  /A  l 


A 

CRITICAL  EXAMINATION 

OF  THE 

EVIDENCES  ADDUCED 

TO 

ESTABLISH  THE  THEORY 

T  OF  THE 

NORSE  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA 

BY 

J.  P.  MacLEAN, 


Life  Member  of  the  Gaelic  Society  of  Glasgow;  Honorary  Member  of  the  Gaelic  Society 
of  Inverness ;  Corresponding  Member  of  the  Davenport  Academy  of  Sciences  :  Cor- 
responding Member  of  the  Western  Reserve  Historical  Society  of  Ohio ; 
Author  of  a  "  History  of  Clan  MacLean  :"   "  The  Mound  Builders  ;" 
"Antiquity  of  Man;"   "Mastodon,  Mammoth  and  Man;" 
"  Fingal's  Cave  :  "   "  Jewish  Nature  Worship." 


CHICAGO,  ILL.: 

AMERICAN  ANTIQUARIAN  OFFICE. 
1892. 


89564 


The  impression  of  this  work  is  limited  to  500  copies,  of  which  this  copy  is 

No.- 


E 
1  05 

M2-Z- 


PREFACE. 


THE  ensuing  chapters  were  written  for  and  appeared  in  the 
American  Antiquarian.  As  will  be  observed,  the  design 
was  to  confine  the  line  of  argument  to  the  statements  of  such 
books  as  had  been  recently  published,  that  advocated  the 
Norse  discovery  of  America.  It  was  deemed  unnecessary  to 
call  particular  attention  to  older  works,  because  those  more 
recent  revamped  former  arguments  and  assertions  contained 
in  the  previous  publications,  and  had  virtually  supplanted  them 
in  the  market.  The  value  of  the  statements  in  previous  publi- 
cations should  not  be  discredited  or  obliterated.  If  presented 
side  by  side  with  the  line  of  thought  adopted  by  those  now 
occupying  the  field,  a  strange  anomaly  would  appear.  The 
inconsistencies  of  recent  claimants  would  be  forcibly  illustrated. 

To  array  the  evidences  of  the  one  against  the  assumptions 
of  the  other — all  advocating  substantially  the  same  theory- 
has  not  been  attempted,  because  the  subject  has  been  treated 
with  a  due  regard  for  the  facts  bearing  on  the  case.  If  the 
design  had  been  to  place  the  advocates  in  an  unenviable  posi- 
tion, then  the  dissertation  and  notes  to  Samuel  Laing's  trans- 
lation of  Sturlasson's  "Heimskringla"  could,  with  propriety,  be 
introduced.  Although  an  avowed  advocate  of  the  Norse 
theory,  Laing  unsparingly  points  out  certain  inconsistencies  in 
the  Saga  narratives.  Such  statements  as  grapes  ripening  in 
the  springtime,  and  causing  one  to  be  drunken  upon  eating 
them;  the  growing  of  wheat  and  corn  unplanted;  the  great 
number  of  eggs  of  the  eider  duck,  etc.,  he  boldly  ascribes  to 
"the  fiction  of  some  Saga  maker".  He  has  but  little  patience 
with  those  who  would  find  evidences  of  Norse  occupation  in 
America,  and  declares  they  are  poets  and  not  antiquarians. 


The  so-called  American  evidences  he  regards  as  a  hoax,  and 
speaking  of  the  Newport  stone  mill,  says:  "Those  sly  rogues 
of  Americans  dearly  love  a  quiet  hoax.  With  all  gravity  they 
address  a  solemn  communication  to  the  Royal  Society  of 
Northern  Antiquarians  at  Copenhagen,  respecting  these  inter- 
esting remains  of  'a  structure  bearing  an  antique  appearance,' 
— 'a  building  possibly  of  the  ante-Columbian  times,'— 'a  relic, 
it  may  be,  of  the  Northmen,  the  first  discoverers  of  Vinland!' 
*  *  *  *  It  must  be  allowed  that  these  Rhode  Island  wags 
have  played  off  their  joke  with  admirable  dexterity."  Relying 
on  the  Sagas  alone,  Laing  would  confine  the  discoveries  to  the 
coast  of  Labrador,  "or  some  places  north  of  the  Gulf  of  St. 
Lawrence". 

The  eight  chapters  relating  to  the  Norse  discovery  of 
America,  which  Peringskiold  inserted  in  his  Swedish  and  Latin 
translation  of  the  "Heimskringla",  Laing  reproduces  in  an 
appendix  to  the  third  volume.  In  one  of  the  notes  added  to 
these  extra  chapters,  he  animadverts  to  the  statement  that 
Karlsefne  had  taken  "cattle  of  all*  kind"  to  Vinland,  and 
demonstrates  that  such  could  not  be  true;  and  further  remarks: 
"It  looks  as  if  the  Saga-relator  was  applying  his  ideas  formed 
on  Iceland,  where  cattle  and  food  for  them  are  not  scarce,  to 
a  country  by  nature  so  totally  different  as  Greenland,  and  that 
he  did  not  know  of  the  difference."  This  goes  to  confirm  the 
position  taken  in  the  following  pages. 

September,  1892. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I.                                            PAGE. 
A  General  Review I 

CHAPTER  II. 
The  Sagas 9 

CHAPTER  III. 
The  Sagas  and  America 17 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Norse  Remains  in  America 33 

CHAPTER  V. 
Odds  and  Ends 48 


PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA, 


CHAPTER  I. 


A  GENERAL  REVIEW. 

It  is  generally  conceded  that  the  greatest  achievement  re- 
corded in  the  annals  of  history  was  the  discovery  of  America 
by  Columbus.  It  has  been  fraught  with  incalculable  benefits  to 
the  human  race.  To  the  genius  of  Columbus  must  be  ascribed 
all  the  honor  and  glory. 

It  is  unnecessary  in  this  place  to  narrate  the,  great  difficulties 
which  Columbus  was  forced  to  surmount  in  order  to  accomplish 
his  purpose.  These  have  been  so  often  set  forth  that  all  students 
of  American  history  have  become  familiar  with  them.  The 
world  has  deservedly  accorded  unbounded  praise  to  the  Genoese 
mariner,  having  called  him  the  greatest  of  discoverers,  and 
inscribed  his  name  among  the  most  illustrious  of  men. 

Men  being  more  or  less  inclined  to  theorize,  and  to  a  certain 
extent  governed  by  race  prejudice  and  religious  rancor,  it 
would  not  be  surprising  that  there  should  be  those  who  would 
attempt  to  pluck  the  laurel  from  the  great  explorer's  brow.  It 
is  a  shame  that  calumny  and  strong  epithets  should  be  resorted 
to  in  the  discussion  of  a  purely  historical  question.  Upon  the 
face  of  it  there  is  a  countenance  of  weakness  in  the  cause  of 
those  who  resort  to  such  methods.  Mere  theories  will  arise 
and  their  associates  will  demand  attention,  however  much  facts 
may  be  distorted  in  order  to  substantiate  their  views.  The 
weaker  the  cause  the  louder  the  contention. 

There  is  quite  an  extensive  literature  relating  to  the  so-called 
pre-Columbian  discovery  of  America,  and  claims  have  been 
put  forth  in  behalf  of  various  persons  more  or  less  mythical.  It 
would  be  a  work  of  supererogation  to  enter  into  a  discussion  of 
all  the  views  that  have  been  proclaimed  and  the  reasons  there- 
for. When  sifted  none  of  them  will  bear  a  critical  analysis, 
although  documentary  evidence  is  assumed  to  support  ten  or 
more  of  these  hypotheses. 

The  one  that  takes  rank  in  priority  is  that  ot  Hoci-Shin,  a 
Buddhist  monk,  who,  in  the  year  499  A.  D.,  returned  from  an 
extensive  journey  to  the  east  and  reported  that  he  had  visitedfa 
country  lying  about  6,600  miles  to  the  east  of  Japan,  and  an 


2  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

equal  distance  to  the  east  of  China.  He  called  the  country 
Tusango  on  account  of  many  trees  growing  there  that  went  by 
that  name.  It  has  been  assumed  that  this  coutry  was  Mexico 
and  California.  The  Irish  discovery  appears  to  have  been  two 
fold.  First,  St.  Patrick  sent  missionaries  to  the  "Isles  of 
America",  which  would  place  the  date  prior  to  460  A.  D.,  thus 
ante-dating  the  purported  Chinese  discovery  ;  and,  second,  at  a 
time  little  previous  to  the  Norse  discovery  or  toward  the  close 
of  the  tenth  century.  Next  in  chronological  order  is  the  advent 
of  the  Norsemen  in  America,  about  1000  A.  D. 

Some  time  previous  to  1147  there  set  sail  from  Lisbon  eigfct 
Arabian  brothers  called  Maghrourins,  who  swore  they  would 
not  return  till  they  had  penetrated  to  the,  farthest  bounds  of  the 
Dark  Sea.  They  came  to  an  island  inhabited  by  a  people  of 
lofty  stature  and  a  red  skin. 

Another  story  affirms  that  about  the  year  1169,  Madoc,  a  son 
of  Owen  Gwywedd,  prince  of  North  Wales,  left  his  country  on 
account  of  disturbances,  and  determined  to  search  out  some 
unknown  land  and  dwell  there.  With  a  few  ships  he  embarked 
with  his  followers  ana  for  many  months  they  sailed  westward  until 
they  came  to  a  large  and  fertile  country,  when  they  disembarked 
and  permanently  settled.  After  a  time  Madoc  returned  to 
Wales,  where  he  fitted  out  ten  ships  and  prevailed  on  a  large 
number  of  his  countrymen  to  return  with  him.  Both  Mexico 
and  the  Californias  have  been  assigned  as  the  place  of  this 
Welsh  settlement. 

The  marvelous  tales  of  the  Venetian  brothers,  Nicolo  and 
Antonio  Zeno,  date  back  to  the  year  1380.  They  established  a 
monastery  and  church  in  Greenland.  After  the  death  of  Nicolo 
the  other  remained  for  fourteen  years  in  the  service  of  the 
chieftan,  Earl  Tichmni.  Antonio  heard  of  a  land,  a  thousand 
miles  distant,  populous  and  ivilized,  ruled  by  a  king,  and  having 
Latin  books  in  the  library.  Farther  to  the  southwest  was  a 
more  civilized  region  and  temperate  climate.  Antonio  set  out 
in  search  of  this  land,  but  the  voyage  proved  unsuccessful. 

An  obscure  writer  of  the  date  of  1717  put  forth  the  claim 
that,  about  the  year  1464,  John  Vaz  Casta  Cortereal,  a  gentleman 
of  the  royal  household  of  Portugal,  explored  the  northern  seas 
by  order  of  Alphonso  V,  and  discovered  Terra  de  Baccalhaos 
or  land  of  codfish,  afterwards  called  New  Foundland.  The  dis- 
covery by  the  Poles  is  placed  in  the  year  1476;  that  by  Martin 
Behaim  in  1483  ;  and  that  by  Cousin  of  Dieppe  in  1488. 

These  alleged  discoveries  have  not  been  without  their  advo- 
cates. Any  other  purported  discovery  will  gather  to  itself 
zealous  defenders,  however  short  may  be  the  thread  upon  which 
the  evidence  depends.  If  it  once  gains  a  foothold,  the  most 
cogent  of  reasons  and  the  most  forcible  of  facts  will  fail  to 
dislodge  it.  Even  intelligent  minds  will  be  drawn  into  the 
maelstrom  of  error. 


GENERAL  REVIEW.  3 

Closely  related  to  the  purported  pre-Columbian  discoveries 
are  certain  accounts  of  early  travelers,  who  found  the  native 
Indian  language  to  be  Welsh  and  Highland  Scotch.  The 
evidence  of  this  rests  upon  a  more  plausible  basis  than  the 
former ;  and  yet  it  would  be  difficult  to  find  an  anthropologist 
who  accepted  the  story  of  Morgan  Jones  or  the  pleasant  tale  of 
Lord  Monboddo.  As  no  one  has  recently  championed  the 
latter,  it  will  be  only  necessary  now  to  turn  the  attention  to  the 
former. 

Of  all  the  theories  propounded,  the  advocates  of  the  Norse 
discovery  have  been  the  most  pertinacious.  They  have  been 
instant  in  season  and  out  of  season.  Among  those  who  have 
shoved  themselves  to  the  front,  Mrs.  M.  A.  Shipley,  Professor 
R.  B.  Anderson  and  B.  F.  DeCosta  may  be  considered  to  be 
the  most  conspicuous.  Of  these,  the  first  is  the  most  reckless 
in  regard  to  statements,  and  the  last  named  is  the  fairest  and 
most  judicious  ;  whilst  all  of  them  are  easily  detected  in  trying 
to  make  out  a  case.  Even  questions  not  directly  concerned  in 
the  presentation  of  the  case  have  been  dragged  into  the  contro- 
versy. Christianity  and  the  Christian  Church  have  come  in 
for  a  tirade  of  abuse. 

"The  Christian  nature  is  undoubtedly  the  same  all  over  the 
world  :  hypocritical,  canting,  secretive,  avaricious,  deeply 
designing  and  Machiavellian  ;  each  leader  makes  a  tool  and  a 
dupe  of  his  followers  ;  congregations  do  their  priests'  or  their 
ministers'  bidding,  and  the  whole  society  is  permeated  with 
their  spirit  and  purpose."1  "The  North  failed  and  sank  into  a 
decline  through  accepting  Christianity."2  "The  Church  has 
destroyed  self-respect."3  "To  tear  down  Christianity,  under 
present  conditions,  is  in  no  wise  iconoclasm  ;  neither  will  it 
leave  a  moral  vacuum  ;  the  necessity  is  not  even  upon  us  of 
building  up  something  else  in  its  stead,  for  a  structure  has  stood 
for  ages,  testified  to  by  reliable  history,  which  the  Church  and 
Christianity  have  obscured  and  hidden  from  the  gaze."* 

Not  satisfied  with  this  unprovoked  invective  against  Chris- 
tianity, we  are  also  treated  to  an  assault  on  Columbus,  who  is 
accused  of  being  a  thief,  "  ambitious  and  unscrupulous,"  "  bigoted 
Roman,"  "Italian  adventurer,"  "  needy  adventurer,"  etc.  These 
epithets,  which  appear  to  be  so  savory  to  the  author  of 
Icelandic  Discoveries,  appear  to  have  been  inspired  by  Professor 
Anderson,  who,  quoting  with  approval  from  Goodrich,  declares 
Columbus  to  have  been  "  a  fraud,  mean,  selfish,  perfidious  and 
cruel."5 

Without  a  blush  or  qualification  it  is  declared  that  Columbus 
"  stole  his  information  "  concerning  the  Western  Continent  from 
the  Norsemen  ;6  that  he  made  a  "secret  "  visit  to  Iceland  ;7  that 


1  Shipley's  Icelandic  Discoveries,  p.  171.       2  Ibid.  p.  183.      3  Ibid.  188.      4  Ibid.  192 

5  America  Not  Discovered  by  Columbus,  p.  7. 

6  Icelandic  Discoveries,  p.  9.       7  Ibid.  p.  11. 


4  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

his  discovery  was  "bogus";1  that  the  Norse  "were  the  first 
Europeans  who  landed  on  American  shores  was  pregnant  with 
good  to  us  ;  this  made  'the  name  America  the  synonym  of 
wealth,  of  adventure,  of  freedom',  and  not  the  false  tidings  borne 
by  Columbus  to  Spain  of  a  discovery  of  which  he  would  have 
been  incapable  but  for  stolen  information ;  "2  "  Columbus,  the 
bigoted  Roman  Catholic  adventurer,  who  fed  his  ambition  and 
greed  on  the  narratives  of  the  Norse  voyages  to  America,  read 
secretly  in  Iceland,  strove  to  give  the  New  World  the  opposite 
tendency, — the  downward  tendency";*  Columbus,  hearing  of 
the  Western  World,  "  went  to  Iceland  in  order  to  pursue  the 
investigations  to  which  all  this  had  given  him  a  clue.  After  his 
visit  to  Iceland,  he  made  out  to  find  America,  as  anv  one  else 
could  have  found  it  after  obtaining  definite  directions  ;"*  he  was 
guilty  of  "religious  felony",  and  purloined  the  knowledge  of  a 
discovery  of  transcendent  value  made  by  men  of  a  pagan  race 
who  were  recently  and  very  reluctantly  converted  to  Christian- 
ity, for  the  purpose  ot  securing  princely  honors  and  emoluments 
for  himself,  the  greatest  conceivable  aggrandizement  for  the 
Church.  Such  an  opportunity  for  universal  dominion  as  could 
never,  in  the  nature  of  things,  occur  again  in  the  life  of  the 
world ;  and  last  and  most  important  of  all,  for  the  purpose  of 
making  the  New  World,  through  its  entire  submission  to  the 
Holy  See,  the  means  of  crushing  out  all  tendencies  to  rebellion 
against  the  church  that  might  possibly  manifest  themselves 
again  in  Europe."5 

These  severe  and  uncharitable  views  would  prepare  the 
reader  for  an  estimate  of  the  character  of  the  Norse  as  given  by 
the  same  pen,  for  it  may  be  anticipated  that  one  extreme  follows 
another.  If  the  character  be  exalted,  then  the  literature  created 
by  that  people  must  also  be  transcendent.  "  There  was  no 
stint  of  historical  records  in  Iceland  ;  its  literature  was  as  rich 
and  varied  as  it  was  copious.  The  Latin  lore  (?)  of  the  monks 
could  in  no  sense  be  compared  with  it  ;"6  "  free  to  think  and  to 
act,  to  follow  their  impulses,  the  dearest  aim  of  the  Norsemen 
was  to  cultivate  character,  to  attain  that  degree  of  excellence 
which  would  make  their  life  a  joy  to  them  ;  their  heaven  was 
only  valuable  to  them  as  following  upon  a  valuable  life  here  on 
earth,  and  they  were  never  disposed  to  resign  this  life  for  the 
sake  of  a  future  one  ;  if  they  sought  death,  or  met  it  bravely,  it 
was  for  other  reasons,  not  savoring  of  sickly  renunciation.  This 
aim  of  theirs  to  be  great  developed  a  heroic  age  ;  the  warriors 
and  the  bards  emulated  each  other  ;"7  the  literature  of  Iceland 
was  vast  and  "preserved  in  the  retentive  memories  of  its  Scalds 
and  saga  men,  the  annals  of  what  was  in  many  respects  an  ideal 
civilization,  describing  the  life  of  a  race  mentallv  and  physically 
sound,  whose  thoughts,  words  and  acts  were  strong  and 

1  Icelandic  Discoveries,  p.  13.       2  Ibid.  p.  22.      3  Ibid  p.  34.       4  Ibid.  69.     5  Ibid.  105 
6  ibid.  43.    7  Ibid.  p.  123. 


GENERAL  REVIEW.  5 

vigorous."  "  To  the  supreme  good  fortune  of  future  generations 
this  was  preserved  where  the  Christian  desecrators  could  not 
enter,  it  was  safely  guarded  behind  spiritual  bolts  and  bars,  in 
the  faithful  and  reverent  minds  of  the  people,  and  long  after, 
not  much  before  the  seventeenth  century,  when  the  nations  of 
Europe,  after  the  first  decisive  revolt,  represented  in  the 
Reformation,  had  begun  to  recover  from  the  asphyxia  into 
which  the  unnatural  and  preposterous  doctrines  the  Christian 
religion  had  thrown  them,  Icelandic  history  was  made  known 
to  them,  the  revelation  of  a  system  of  ethics,  of  a  moral  code,  of 
political  and  social  regulations  and  customs  so  unlike  those 
which  Christian  Europe  had  adopted  and  lived  after  that  it 
could  not  at  first  produce  anything  but  astonishment  and  very 
partial  understanding  ;*  "the  value  of  this  literature,  this  history 
of  the  North,  which  from  all  accounts  seems  to  be  the  only 
reliable  history  we  have,  is  that  it  describes,  with  that  graphic 
force,  yielded  by  truth  alone,  a  state  of  society  founded  on 
natural  principles  ;"a  "  the  actual  life  in  Iceland,  the  intellectual 
stature  of  its  people,  reveal  to  us  undreamed-of  possibilities.  In 
casting  off  the  incubus  of  the  Church  we  do  not  enter  unguard- 
edly into  vague  and  problematical  conditions,  but  we  resume 
conditions  once  found  all-sufficient  for  human  welfare,  we  will 
again  lead  the  life  of  rational  beings,  and  defamed  reason  will 
be  our  sure  guide  ;"8  "the  evils  that  the  American  people  are 
vainly  trying  to  reform,  disabled  as  they  are  by  the  paralyzing 
conviction  that  all  human  effort  is  well-nigh  unavailing,  are  not 
manifestly  derived  from  Norse  ethics.  These,  on  the  contrary, 
have  been  the  source  of  infinite  good."4 

The  quotations  thus  given  are  not  to  be  passed  over  slight- 
ingly, as  the  ravings  of  a  disordered  mind,  for  they  have  not 
only  been  inspired  by  less  irrational  writers,  but  have  been 
deemed  important  enough  to  be  published  both  in  England 
(Kegan  Paul,  Trench,  Trubner  &  Co.)  and  America  (John  B. 
Alden.) 

B.  F.  DeCosta  writes:  "We  fable  in  a  great  measure  when 
we  speak  of  our  Saxon  inheritance;  it  is  rather  from  the  North- 
men that  we  have  derived  our  vital  energy,  our  freedom  of 
thought,  and,  in  a  measure  we  do  not  yet  suspect,  our  strength 
of  speech."5  Again,  the  same  writer  is  moved  to  say:  "The 
feature  of  the  Icelandic  sagas  relating  to  America  is  plain.  Their 
simple,  unaffected  statements,  all  uncolored  either  by  personal 
vanity  or  national  ambition,  will  more  and  more  win  the  confi- 
dence of  historians,  who  find  in  their  statements,  committed  to 
writing,  as  all  the  testimony  proves,  in  pre-Columbian  times, 
convincing  and  unanswerable  proof  of  the  fact  that  Leif  Ericson 
and  other  adventurers  found  America  and  visited  New  England 

1  Icelandic  Discoveries,  p.  165.       2  Ibid.  168.       3  Ibid.183.     4  Ibid.  123. 
5  Ibid.,  p.  56. 


6  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

during  the  times  and  under  the  circumstances  described."1 
"Those  who  imagine  that  these  manuscripts,  while  of  pre- 
Columbian  origin,  have  been  tampered  with  and  interpolated, 
show  that  thev  have  not  the  faintest  conception  of  the  state  of 
the  question."2 

Prof.  Anderson  declares  "it  was  the  settlement  of  Iceland  by 
the  Norsemen,  and  the  constant  voyages  between  this  island  and 
Norway,  that  led  to  the  discovery,  first  of  Greenland  and  then 
of  America;  and  it  is  due  to  the  high  intellectual  standing  and 
fine  historical  taste  of  the  Icelanders  that  records  of  these  voy- 
ages were  kept,  first  to  instruct  Columbus  how  to  find  America 
and  afterwards  to  solve  for  us  the  mysteries  concerning  the  dis- 
covery of  this  continent  "3 

Passing  over  these  statements,  for  the  present,  our  attention 
is  called  to  the  confidence  expressed  in  the  universal  belief  in  the 
Norse  discovery.  Without  limitations  or  qualifications  one 
writer  boldly  declares  :  "At  the  present  time,  historians  agree 
with  great  unanimity  that  the  continent  of  America  was  visited 
during  the  tenth  and  eleventh  centuries  by  Icelanders  resident 
in  Greenland  ;"4  but  elsewhere  the  same  advocate  speaks  about 
"  vindicating  the  Norsemen  .  .  .  who  not 

only  gave  us  the  first  knowledge  possessed  of  the  American 
continent,  but  to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  much  beside  that 
we  esteem  valuable."5 

Another  author,  whose  writings  are  not  less  numerous,  calls 
loudly  and  vehemently  to  have  the  truths  established,  because 
"it  is  necessary  for  the  truth,  as  to  the  discovery  of  America,  to 
be  established  immediately;"  that  the  first  duty  is  obivously  to 
confirm  the  fact  of  the  Norse  discovery",  the  history  of  which 
has  been  "so  miraculously  preserved  in  Iceland",  and  further- 
more "the  single  statement  that  the  discovery  of  America  by 
the  Norsemen  has  never  been  conceded  by  the  world  to  be  a 
fact."6 

If  we  proceed  upon  the  assumption  that  the  Norsemen  dis- 
covered America,  that  Vinland  was  in  America,  the  sagas  are 
"  reliable  history",  then  it  must  be  conceded  there  must  be  an 
agreement  among  those  accepting  this  reliability,  as  to  the 
location  of  Vinland  or  any  other  specified  place.  Not  necessarily 
the  exact  spot  should  be  singled  out,  but  the  opinions  should 
conform  to  the  relative  position.  But  most  unfortunately  there 
is  a  wide  divergence  of  opinion  among  historians. 

Torfeus,  who  awakened  interest  in  the  subject  in  1705,  was 
content  to  place  the  scene  in  America,  without  even  attempting 
to  name  the  localities.  In  1755,  Paul  Henri  Mallet,  in  h\s 

1  Pre-Columbian  Discovery  of  America,  p.  59.  2  Ibid,  p.  40. 

3  America  Not  Discovered  by  Columbus,  p.  55. 

4  DeCosta,  in  the  Popular  Science  Monthly,  Nov.  1880,  p.  35. 

5  Pre-Columbian  Discovery  of  America,  Second  Edition,  p.  7. 

6  Icelandic  Discoveries,  pp,  14, 194,  195. 


GENERAL  REVIEW.  7 

"  Histoire  de  Dannemarc",  locates  the  scene  in  Labrador  and 
Newfoundland.  Robertson,  in  1778,  in  his  "History  of  America", 
although  with  misgivings  thinks  "that  the  situation  of  New- 
foundland corresponds  best  with  that  of  the  country  discovered 
by  the  Norwegians."  M.  C.  Sprengel  (1782),  in  his  "Geschichte 
der  Entdeck  Ungen  ",  thinks  they  went  as  far  south  as  Caro- 
lina. In  1793,  Munoz,  in  his  "  Historia  del  Nuevo  Mundo", 
puts  Vinland  in  Greenland.  Barrow,  in  his  "Voyages  to  the 
Arctic  Regions"  (1818),  places  Vinland  in  Labrador  or  New- 
foundland. Hugh  Murray,  in  "His  Discoveries  and  Travels  in 
North  America",  (1829),  doubts  the  assigning  of  Vinland  to 
America.  Henry  Wheaton  (1831),  in  his  "  History  of  the 
Northmen",  thought  Vinland  should  be  looked  for  in  New  En- 
gland. Bancroft,  the  most  eminent  of  American  historians,  in 
the  original  third  edition  (1840),  of  his  history,  says  "Scandina- 
vians may  have  reached  the  shores  of  Labrador;  the  soil  of  the 
United  States  has  not  one  vestige  of  their  presence."  Wilson 
(1862),  in  his  uPrehistonc  Man,"  declares  that  Markland,"which, 
so  far  as  the  name  or  description  can  guide  us,  might  be  any- 
where on  the  American  coast,"  and  that  Nantucket  is  referred 
to  is  assumed,  because  they  spoke  of  the  dew  upon  the  grass, 
because  it  tasted  sweet.  Foster,  in  his  "Prehistoric  Races  of 
the  United  States"  (1873),  abruptly  dismisses  the  subject,  speak- 
ing of  it  as  conjecture  and  no  memorials  having  been  left  behind. 
Nadaillac  (1882)  speaks  of  the  Norse  discovery  as  "legends  in 
which  a  little  truth  is  mingled  with  much  fiction."  Weise,  in 
his  "Discoveries  of  America,"  (1884),  believes  the  sea-rovers 
did  not  even  pass  Davis'  Straits.  The  Massachusetts  Historical 
Society  (1887),  through  its  committee,  reports:  "There  is  the 
same  sort  of  reason  for  believing  in  the  existence  of  Leif  Ericson 
that  there  is  for  believing  in  the  existence  of  Agamemnon — 
they  are  both  traditions  accepted  by  later  writers;  but  there  is 
no  more  reason  for  regarding  as  true  the  details  related  about 
his  discoveries  than  there  is  for  accepting  as  historic  truth  the 
narratives  contained  in  the  Homeric  poems.  It  is  antecedently 
probable  that  the  Northmen  discovered  America  in  the  early 
part  of  the  eleventh  century;  and  this  discovery  is  confirmed 
by  the  same  sort  of  historical  tradition,  not  strong  enough  to  be 
called  evidence,  upon  which  our  belief  in  many  of  the  accepted 
facts  of  history  rests."  It  is  certainly  evident  that  Winsor,  in 
his  "Narrative  and  Critical  History  of  America,"  does  not  de- 
pend upon  the  Norse  discovery. 

Following  the  account  of  the  sagas,  as  given  by  the  astute 
editors,  it  is  discovered  that  the  first  land  made  by  the  Norse 
was  Helluland,  or  Newfoundland.  Farther  to  the  south,  they 
came  upon  a  thickly-wooded  country,  which  they  termed  Mark- 
land,  or  Nova  Scotia.  After  a  voyage  to  the  south  of  several 
days,  Cape  Cod  was  reached.  Vinland  comprehends  Martha's 
Vineyard  and  surrounding  country.  In  arriving  at  these  loca- 


8  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

tions,  in  order  that  they  might  be  corroborated,  it  is  not  neces- 
sary to  point  out  the  many  "supposes"  and  adroit  changes  called 
forth  by  the  text,  in  order  to  force  it  to  say  just  what  might  be 
desired.  Neither  is  it  found  advisable  that  the  "simple  and  un- 
affected sagas,"  the  "only  reliable  history"  we  have,  should  be 
allowed  to  speak  for  themselves,  because  a  skilled  interpreter  can 
carefully'  interpolate  and  explain,  whenever  such  may  be  deemed 
necessary,  which  is  quite  frequent.  Nor  has  it  been  thought 
best  to  give  a  succinct  account  of  the  sagas  by  the  advocates 
of  the  pre-Columbian  theory,  and  a  correct  analysis  of  their 
contents,  for  undoubtedly  such  an  exposure  would  not  add  to 
the  lustre  which  it  has  been  attempted  to  cast  over  them.  De- 
spoiled of  careful  editing,  the  many  supposes  eliminated,  the 
facts  and  contents  made  known,  the  record  would  present  itself 
in  an  unenviable  light. 

It  is  not  the  advocating  of  a  theory,  the  foisting  of  an  idea, 
the  building  up  of  a  clever  hypothesis,  that  is  to  be  desired.  If 
the  sagas  give  a  simple,  clear,  convincing  narrative  of  a  voyage 
or  voyages  to  the  western  world,  and  if  those  sagas  have  been 
written  by  men  desiring  to  speak  only  the  truth  although,  there 
might  be  a  slight  tendency  to  romancing,  and  the  descriptions 
of  places  are  accurate  enough  to  be  traced  out,  and  if  written 
before  the  discovery  by  Columbus,  there  can  be  but  one  result. 
It  must  then  be  admitted  that  the  sea-rovers  saw  the  New  World. 
If  so,  what  then? 

This  being  true,  there  is  no  need  to  abuse  Columbus  and  hold 
him  up  to  the  scorn  of  mankind.  It  will  be  unnecessary  to 
traduce  Christianity  and  hold  up  the  ancient  Norse  as  patterns 
of  excellence,  and  as  having  enjoyed  an  ideal  civilization.  The 
distinguished  authors  who  have  expressed  doubt  and  disbelief 
will  be  hoisted  on  their  own  petard. 

It  is  not  a  subject  for  strong  adjectives  or  loud  declamation. 
The  sagas  should  receive  the  same  treatment  as  any  other  piece 
of  writing  that  has  been  brought  to  light  after  having  remained 
covered  for  ages.  The  facts  they  present  should  be  accepted; 
the  theories  for  what  they  are  worth;  the  romancing  r  jected; 
the  marvellous  sifted,  and  the  whole  analysed. 

It  must  not  be  assumed  that  it  is  here  purposed  to  make  an 
investigation  into  every  line  pointed  out  in  these  literary  remains, 
for  now  we  are  interested  only  in  their  purported  relation  to 
the  discovery  of  America.  Nor  is  it  to  be  presumed  that  a 
happy  conclusion  will  be  reached,  for  the  confusion,  as  exhibited 
by  the  past,  must  be  expected  to  be  continued  in  the  future. 
That  same  tendency  to  theorize,  already  referred  to,  and  desire 
to  be  at  variance  with  rugged  facts,  will  still  be  the  great  com- 
panion of  some — erratic,  tempestuous,  baneful. 


THE  SAGAS. 


CHAPTER  II. 


THE  SAGAS. 

It  appears  that  Iceland  had  long  been  inhabited  by  a  small 
colony  of  Irish  monks,  representing  the  Culdee  form  of  the 
Christian  religion.  About  874  A.  D.  a  stream  of  emigration  set 
in,  composed  of  Scandinavians,  which  continued  for  a  period  of 
sixty  years,  during  which  time  some  four  thousand  homesteads 
were  established  around  the  habitable  fringe  along  the  great 
bays  and  firths.  The  first  authentic  successful  settlement  was 
made  under  Ingolf,  a  Norwegian,  who,  after  a  fruitless  attempt 
on  the  south  coast  in  870,  established  himstlf  at  Reikiavik  in 
874.  This  tide  of  emigration  was  caused  by  the  changes  intro- 
duced in  Norway  by  Harald  Haarfager,  for  such  people  as 
could  not  endure  them  left  for  other  countries,  particularly  to 
the  habitable  coast  districts  of  Iceland.  In  the  immigrations 
into  Iceland  three  distinct  streams  are  traced.  The  first  was 
that  of  four  noblemen  from  Norway — Ingolf,  Ketil  Haeng, 
Skalla-Grim,  and  Thorolf,  who,  with  their  dependents,  settled 
in  the  southwest  from  870  to  890.  The  second  was  that  of 
Aud,  widow  of  Olaf  the  White,  king  of  Dublin,  who  came 
from  the  Western  Islands  of  Scotland,  followed  by  a  number  of 
her  kinsmen,  many,  like  herself,  being  Christians,  and  settled 
the  best  land  in  the  west,  northwest  and  north,  and  there  founded 
families  that  long  swayed  its  destinies,  which  occurred  between 
890  and  900.  The  third  was  a  few  more  newcomers  direct 
from  Norway,  which  took  place  between  900  and  930.  These 
completed  the  settlement  of  the  south,  northeast  and  southeast. 
In  i  zoo  the  population  numbered  about  50,000  souls,  quite  a 
proportion  of  which  was  of  Irish  blood.  The  government  at 
first,  in  the  times  of  paganism,  was  hierarchic  and  aristocratic. 
Christianity  was  not  formally  introduced  until  the  year  1002,  or 
about  one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  years  after  the  first  settle- 
ment and  not  even  then  without  much  opposition.  Schools 
were  then  founded,  and  two  bishoprics  in  Holar  and  Skalholt. 
Old  Icelandic  possesses  only  forty  runic  monuments,  all  of  them 
practically  worthless  from  a  philological  point  of  view,  the  oldest 
of  which  is  an  inscription  on  a  church  door,  dating  no  farther 
back  than  the  thirteenth  century,  and  therefore  later  than  some 


10  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

of  the  manuscripts.     Hence  one  author  was  moved  to  declare, 
"There  are  no  runic  inscriptions  in  Iceland."* 

The  most  flourishing  period  of  their  literature  and  commerce 
was  from  the  middle  of  the  twelfth  to  the  close  of  the  thirteenth 
century,  when,  on  account  of  domestic  broils,  Haco  V.  of  Nor- 
way, in  1262,  succeeded  in  reducing  the  whole  island  under  his 
sway.  From  this  time  a  declension  began,  which  was  not 
arrested  until  the  outbreak  of  the  Reformation,  when  the  influ- 
ence of  the  latter  was  felt  in  Iceland  as  early  as  1540,  but  not 
established  until  1551.  Unfortunately  its  necessary  complement 
— a  social  and  political  revolution — never  came  to  Iceland. 

Notwithstanding  its  boasted  literature,  Iceland  has  never  pro- 
duced a  poet  of  the  highest  order.  This  has  been  accounted 
tor  on  the  assumption  that  their  energy  was  lavished  upon  the 
saga,  a  prose  epic.  Their  poems  lack  the  qualities  of  high 
imagination,  deep  pathos,  fresh  love  of  nature,  passionate 
dramatic  power  and  noble  simplicity  of  language,  so  character- 
istic of  the  Western  Isles  of  Scotland. 

The  saga  represents  the  real  strength  and  power  of  Icelandic 
literature,  some  thirty-five  or  forty  of  which  still  remain,  none 
of  them  dating  earlier  than  the  twelfth  century. 

The  father  of  Icelandic  history  was  Ari  Frode,  and  nearly  all 
that  is  now  known  of  the  heathen  commonwealth  may  be  traced 
to  him.  He  secured  and  put  in  order  the  fragmentary  tradi- 
tions that  had  begun  to  die  out.  He  fixed  the  style  in  which 
Icelandic  history  should  be  composed.  Some  of  his  writings 
have  entirely  disappeared,  and  those  that  remain  are  only  pre- 
served in  the  writings  of  later  compilers.  Ari  was  born  in  1066 
and  died  in  the  year  1148.  The  most  eminent  of  Icelandic  his- 
torians, and  the  most  prominent  man  that  country  ever  produced, 
was  SnorriSturlasson,  born  in  1178.  •  Having  married  Herdis,  a 
daughter  of  a  rich  priest  living  at  Borg,  he  thereby  laid  the 
foundation  of  a  large  fortune.  His  methods  of  acquiring  wealth 
are  more  than  hinted  at  as  not  being  legal.  The  promises  he 
had  made  in  Norway  he  did  not  trouble  himself  about  fulfilling. 
He  quarreled  with  his  brother,  his  son,  his  nephew,  his  son-in- 
law,  and  his  wife,  and  was  continually  in  a  broil.  He  wanted  to 
marry  Solveig,  and  promised  to  increase  her  wealth.  He  mar 
ried,  in  1224,  Halveig,  a  widow,  although  his  wife  was  still 
living.  By  the  Thing  he  was  appointed  an  expounder  of  the 
laws  of  Iceland,  but  disregarded  the  same  laws  when  they 
affected  himself.  His  quarrels  and  feuds  affected  the  greater  part 
of  Iceland,  and  in  1232  broke  out  into  civil  war.  This  continued 
until  about  1259,  when  his  sons-in-law  sent  back  his  daughters, 
the  cause  of  their  quarrel  being  that  their  marriage  portions 
were  not  paid.  He  was  driven  out  of  the  country  by  his  brother 
Sighvat,  but  returned  in  1239.  He  quarreled  with  the  sons  of 


•Vicary's  "Saga  Times,"  p.  163. 


THE  SAGAS.  11 

his  wife  Halveig  about  their  mother's  property.  On  the  night 
of  September  22d,  1241,  he  was  assassinated  by  Gissur  Thor- 
valdsson,  accompanied  by  seventy  men,  all  of  whom  had  sworn 
to  kill  Snorri  Sturlasson,  his  own  friends  and  kinsmen  being  the 
murderers.  In  this  atmosphere  of  strife  he  found  time  to  write 
his  history  and  traditions.  The  prominent  features  of  his  char- 
acter were  cunning,  ambition  and  avarice,  combined  with  want 
of  courage  and  aversion  to  effort. 

The  first  sagas  were  written  down  on  separate  scrolls  in  the 
generation  succeeding  that  of  Ari,  or  from  about  1140  to  1220. 
Then  they  passed  through  different  phases,  edited  and  com- 
pounded from  1 220  to  1260.  After  this  they  were  padded  and 
amplified  (from  1260  to  1300),  and  during  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury were  collected  in  large  manuscripts.  The  sagas  grew  up 
in  the  milder  days  that  immediately  succeeded  the  change  of 
faith,  when  the  deeds  of  the  principal  families  were  still  cher- 
ished, and  their  exploits  narrated  by  the  firesides  during  the 
long  winters.  At  all  feasts  and  gatherings  there  were  those 
particularly  adapted  to  the  reciting  of  the  occurrences  of  the 
past,  and  who  wove  their  recitations  into  such  a  form  as  would 
most  readily  appeal  to  the  imagination.  Each  reciter  impro- 
vised his  own  comments  and  injected  such  statements  as  best 
suited  his  imagination.  The  artistic  features  of  the  story  were 
carefully  elaborated  and  the  appropriate  finishing  touches  sup- 
plied. The  Irish  characteristics  greatly  predominated  in  the 
sagas  of  the  west.  The  best  compositions  belong  to  the  west, 
and  the  name  of  nearly  every  classic  writer  belongs  there — or 
in  the  place  where  there  is  the  greatest  admixture  of  Irish  blood. 
But  in  all  the  Icelandic  sagas  there  is  the  same  keen  grasp  of 
character,  the  love  of  action,  and  that  intense  delight  in  blood, 
which  almost  assumes  the  garb  of  religious  passion.  The  ro- 
mancing spirit  of  the  south  had  entered  distant  Iceland,  and  the 
fireside  stories  became  impregnated  more  or  less  by  its  influ- 
ence. Horn  has  very  justly  observed  that  "some  of  the  sagas 
were  doubtless  originally  based  on  facts,  but  the  telling  and  re- 
telling have  changed  them  into  pure  myths."* 

In  speaking  of  "dreams  of  the  Sagas,"  Vicary  remarks:  "The 
sagas  are  often  so  full  of  periphrase,  and  the  figurative  meaning 
so  dark,  and  taken  at  so  great  a  distance  from  its  original  sense 
that  more  thought  must  have  been  suggested  to  the  mind  than 
the  skald  had  conceived.  This,  no  doubt,  led  the  imaginations 
of  people  in  the  saga  time  to  dwell  on  the  nature  and  import- 
ance of  dreams,  with  the  result  that  we  have  the  stories,  it  not 
the  histories,  of  the  dreams  of  persons  who  lived  eight  or  ten 
centuries  since.  Their  strong  points  are  that  they  are  graphic 
and  with  decided  color.  .  .  .  The  real  criticism  is 
that  the  period  of  the  sagas  is  short  relatively,  and,  however 

*  Wlnsor's  "Narrative  and  Critical  History,"  Vol.  I,  p.  88. 


12  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

wonderful  for  the  time,  their  narration  is  more  poetical  than 
accurate;  while,  in  comparison,  the  experience  of  common  sense 
is  long."* 

The  sagas  delight  more  or  less  in  the  improbable.  The 
Ynglinga  saga  contains  a  description  of  King  Jorund's  custom 
of  harrying  the  coasts  of  his  neighbors.  His  son  On  pursued 
the  same  occupation.  At  the  age  of  sixty  the  latter  sacrificed 
his  eldest  son  to  Odin,  who  therefore  extended  his  lease  of  life 
for  another  sixty  years.  He  therefore  sacrificed  other  sons,  and 
for  each  son  was  granted  ten  more  years  of  life,  until  he  reached 
two  hundred  years,  and  would  have  offered  up  his  remaining 
son  had  not  his  subjects  interfered. 

Accounts  are  also  given  of  the  B&rscerk  (supposed  to  mean 
"bare-shirt,"  and  called  in  Icelandic  Ulfrhedin^  or  wolf-skin);  a 
class  of  men  who  fought  without  armor,  and  wearing  only  a 
shirt  of  skins,  or  at  times  naked.  They  were  of  unusual  physi- 
cal development  and  savagery,  and  were  liable  to  a  state  of  ex- 
citement in  which  they  displayed  superhuman  strength,  and 
they  spared  neither  friend  nor  foe.  They  could  swallow  fire, 
go  through  it  naked  and  fling  their  bodies  on  the  edges  of  weap- 
ons without  injury.  They  would  perform  prodigies  of  valor, 
would  roar  and  howl  like  savage  beasts,  were  the  pests  of 
society,  but  were  occasionally  useful  for  deeds  of  blood.  In  the 
Knstnisaga,  that  narrates  the  introduction  of  Christianity  into 
Iceland,  it  is  stated  that  there  were  two  Basrsserks,  who  were 
brothers,  and  who  were  unusually  savage;  would  howl  like 
wolves,  run  with  bare  feet  through  the  fire,  and  pretended  that 
swords  could  not  cut  them.  Bishop  Fredrik,  who  had  come  to 
Iceland  from  North  Germany,  was  a  very  holy  and  sensible 
man.  He  blessed  the  fire  and  the  sword,  with  the  result  that 
the  Beersaerks  were  burnt  like  other  people;  and  when  the)^  fell 
upon  the  points  of  the  swords,  to  their  surprise,  they  were  killed 
like  other  people  under  similar  circumstances.  It  is  also  related 
that  King  Olav  sent  Tangbrand  from  Norway  to  Iceland  to 
extend  Christianity  in  the  latter  country.  He  was  challenged 
to  a  duel  by  a  fierce  Basrsaerk,  who  made  the  usual  boast  that 
he  could  pass  harmless  through  fire  and  no  sword  could  pierce 
his  skin.  Tangbrand  suggested  that  he  make  his  word  good. 
The  Baerscerk  fell  on  his  sword,  and  to  the  astonishment  of  all 
it  penetrated  him  and  he  died  in  consequence.  This  was  owing 
to  the  fact  that  Tangbrand  had  made  a  cross  on  the  sword,  which 
interfered  with  the  protection  afforded  by  the  devil. 

It  was  taught  that  after  an  attack  of  frenzy  the  superhuman 
spirit  left  the  Beersaerk's  body,  with  the  result  that  great  ex- 
haustion followed.  In  the  Eyrbyggjasaga,  an  Icelander  named 
Vernund  obtained  two  Baersasrks  of  Swedish  extraction,  one 
called  Halle  and  the  other  Leikner.  They  were  larger  and 

*Saga  Times,  p.  16. 


THE  SAGAS.  13 

stronger  than  other  men,  and  when  not  under  the  influence  were 
tolerably  tractable  ;  but  otherwise  were  dangerous,  sparing 
neither  friend  nor  foe,  man,  woman  nor  child;  would  howl  like 
beasts,  bite  their  shields,  fall  upon  sharp  weapons  and  eat  fire. 
Before  leaving  for  Iceland,  they  compelled  Vernund  to  bind 
himself  to  supply  them  with  everything  they  asked  for,  in  re- 
turn for  their  services.  They  came  to  Iceland  the  same  year 
that  Erik  the  Red  sailed  for  Greenland.  Soon  after  their  arrival 
Halle  demanded  of  Vernund  to  procure  him  a  wife  of  good 
Icelandic  family.  Knowing  that  no  respectable  woman  would 
desire  such  a  husband,  Vernund  temporized  with  him,  which 
Halle's  impatient  nature  brooked  only  for  a  short  time,  and 
then  gave  Vernund  sufficient  cause  to  regret  that  he  had  brought 
them  to  Iceland.  Knowing  his  brother  Styr  had  a  blood  feud 
in  which  he  wanted  to  take  action  he  contrived  to  hand  over  to 
him  the  two  Baersaerks,  who  proved  of  great  service  to  him. 
Halle  made  love  to  Styr's  daughter  Asdis,  who  was  a  proud, 
strong  and  manlike  woman.  She  entertained  no  thought  of 
marrying  a  person  of  Halle's  type.  Styr  strongly  disapproved 
of  the  suit.  HaHe  threatened  to  carry  her  off  by  force,  when, 
in  order  to  temporize  with  him,  Styr  promised  he  should  marry 
her  provided  he  and  Leikner  should  make  a  road  through  the 
lava  to  Bjornshavn,  and  build  a  fence  between  the  lava  and  his 
lands,  and  also  make  an  enclosure  inside  the  lava.  This  work 
was  at  once  performed  by  the  exercise  of  unusual  strength. 
When  it  was  finished  Asdis  put  on  her  best  dress  and  met  the 
Baersaerks  on  their  return  home,  saying  nothing  to  them,  but 
simply  walked  by  their  side.  They  were  in  a  state  of  great 
exhaustion  as  a  consequence  of  the  Baersaerkegang,  or  excite- 
ment, having  just  left  them.  Styr  advised  them  to  have  a  hot 
bath,  which  he  heated  to  such  a  pitch  that  the  Baerseerks  burst 
the  door  open,  when  he  speared  them  as  they  came  out. 

Sorcery  and  witchcraft  are  also  important  features  in  some  of 
the  narratives. 

In  treating  of  the  sagas  the  extent  of  those  forged  must  also 
be  considered,  and  how  far  those  remaining  have  been  tampered 
with.  Some  of  the  Icelandic  sagas  are  known  to  have  been 
forged.  They  appear  as  early  as  the  thirteenth  century.  All 
are  quite  poor,  and  appear  to  be  wholly  apocryphal  or  else 
worked  up  on  hints  given  in  genuine  stories.  Some  of  these 
apocryphal  writings  have  been  composed  within  the  present 
century. 

That  some  of  the  sagas  have  been  worked  over  by  later 
writers,  and  others  interpolated,  there  is  no  room  for  doubt.  As 
an  instance  of  the  former  the  Nialsaga  may  serve  as  an  illustra- 
tion. In  style,  contents,  legal  and  historical  weight,  it  is  the 
foremost  of  all  sagas.  It  deals  especially  with  law,  and  contains 
the  pith  and  the  moral  of  all  early  Icelandic  history.  Its  hero 
is  Nial,  a  type  of  the  good  lawyer,  placed  in  contrast  with 


14  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

Mord,  a  villain,  the  example  of  cunning,  trickery  and  wrong- 
doing. A  great  part  of  the  saga  is  taken  up  with  the  three 
cases  and  suits  of  the  divorce,  the  death  of  Hoskuld.  and  the 
burning  of  Nial,  given  with  great  minuteness  and  care.  The 
whole  story  is  an  ideal  saga-plot,  and  appears  to  have  been 
written  by  a  lawyer,  and  according  to  internal  evidence  it  was 
composed  about  1250.  It  has  been  worked  over  by  a  later 
editor  about  1300,  who  has  inserted  many  spurious  verses. 

Perhaps  no  one  could  be  found  hardy  enough  to  dispute  the 
fact  that  Peringskiold,  in  his  edition  of  the  Heimskringla,  edited 
in  1697,  interpolated  eight  chapters  relating  to  the  so-called 
Vinland  voyages,  which  were  afterwards  discovered  to  have 
been  taken  from  Codex  Flatoyensis.  It  was  this  that  Robert- 
son, in  his  "  History  of  America,"  relied  upon  as  evidence  of 
the  Norse  discovery  of  America,  although  he  naively  remarked, 
it  "is  a  very  rude,  confused  tale."*  In  America  this  has  served 
more  to  spread  the  tale  of  this  purported  discovery  than  any 
other  one  source.  It  thereby  gained  a  foothold  in  American 
history,  and  later  compilers,  for  the  most  part,  have  received 
and  adopted  it  without  inquiry  into  the  facts;  just  the  same  as 
other  purported  evidences  have  been  added  without  critical  in- 
quiry. 

DeCosta,  although  affirming  that  "those  who  imagine  that 
these  manuscripts  have  been  tampered  with  and  interpolated 
show  that  they  have  not  the  faintest  conception  of  the  state  of 
the  question,"!  is  forced  to  admit  that  Smith,  in  his  "Dialogues,":}: 
has  suppressed  the  term  "six,"  and  substituted  "by  a  number  of 
days'  sail  unknown,"  in  the  "Landnama-bok"  where  it  speaks 
of  Ireland  the  Great  lying  opposite  of  Vinland,  six  days'  sail 
west  of  Ireland. 

Such  manuscripts  as  have  been  preserved  might  tell  a  won- 
drous tale  of  changes  and  perversions  should  they  fall  under  the 
eye  of  an  expert,  accustomed  to  detect,  with  such  glosses  as 
many  an  old  writing  has  been  subjected  to.  Until  such  detec- 
tions have  been  made  it  is  but  just  to  receive  them  as  they  are, 
with  such  light  as  circumstances  have  surrounded  them. 

The  sagas  need  not  be  solely  depended  upon  to  prove  that 
the  Norsemen  were  a  hardy  band  of  sea-rovers — or  pirates,  as 
they  would  have  been  designated  had  they  lived  in  more  modern 
times.  Their  roving  propensities  led  them  to  the  discovery  of 
Iceland — as  above  intimated — in  the  year  850,  and  Greenland 
was  first  seen  in  876,  by  Gunnbiorn,  who  had  been  driven  out 
to  sea  by  a  storm,  but  a  landing  was  not  effected  until  about 
986,  when  Erik  the  Red  settled  there.  This  Erik  was  born  in 
Norway,  but  was  banished  from  that  country  on  account  of  the 
crime  of  murder.  He  retired  to  Iceland,  where  he  was  again 

•Page  241. 

tPre-Columblat  Discovery,  p.  40.          Jlbid.,  p.  161 


THE;SAGAS. 


15 


outlawed  on  account  of  manslaughter.  Having  heard  of  the 
land  to  the  west,  he,  with  some  of  his  followers,  embarked  for 
that  region. 

It  required  courage  to  sail  in  those  days  from  Norway  to  Ice- 
land, without  a  compass  and  in  frail  boats.  Although  Iceland 
is  but  six  hundred  miles  distant  from  Norway  and  five  hundred 
miles  from  the  north  of  Scotland,  yet  often  the  voyage  required 
months;  nevertheless  it  was  frequently  undertaken  with  no 
other  motive  than  that  of  restlessness.  Greenland,  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  miles  distant  from  Iceland,  was  also  reached,  as 
is  witnessed  bv  the  Norse  remains  still  to  be  observed  there. 

The  ships  used  by  the  Vikings  have  an  especial  interest.  De- 
scriptions are  not  only  preserved,  but  their  remains  have 
been  found.  Owing  to  the  sea-roving  propensities  and  the 
great  desire  to  pillage  other  lands,  ship-building  was  regarded 
as  an  honorable  handicraft,  and  a  great  amount  of  time  and 


••*LJ  '-_ 


A  VIKING  SHIP. 


thought  were  given  to  the  subject.  Some  of  the  results  must 
be  regarded  as  extraordinary.  These  vessels  had  a  good  bow, 
a  clean  run  alt,  and  the  midship  section  was  like  a  duck's  breast. 
Oars  were  used  as  well  as  sails.  According  to  the  saga  of  Olaf 
Tryggvesson,  that  king  had  a  ship  built  that  was  long  and 
broad,  with  huge  sails  and  strongly  timbered.  It  v  as  called 
the  Long  Serpent,  was  shaped  like  a  dragon,  and  had  thirty- 
four  benches  for  rowers.  The  head  and  arched  tail  were  both 
gilt,  and  the  bulwarks  were  as  high  as  in  sea-going  ships.  It 
was  declared  to  have  been  the  best  and  most  costly  of  any  ever 
built  in  Norway.  Knud  the  Great  had  a  dragon  ship,  with  a 
dragon's  head  at  the  bow,  and  a  dragon's  tail  at  the  stern.  In 
the  construction  of  these  ancient  vessels  the  rudder  was  placed 
aft,  over  the  starboard  side,  and  not  in  a  line  with  the  keel,  and 
thus  did  not  interfere  with  the  dragon's  tail.  In  the  time  of 
Erling.  Skakke,  about  noo,  two  benches  of  rowers  were  intro- 


16  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

duced.  The  vessels  were  built  a  little  higher  aft  than  amidships, 
in  order  to  allow  the  man  at  the  helm  to  see  well  forward.  In 
a  sea-fight  the  sterns  of  the  ships  were  lashed  together,  so  that 
no  ship  could  be  attacked  singly,  in  consequence  of  which  the 
fighting  was  hottest  forward  of  the  bows.  The  sides  and  rig- 
ging were  decorated  with  shields.  The  sail  used  was  square, 
made  of  woolen  cloth,  and  often  striped  with  broad  rows  of 
color.  The  mast  was  stepped  in  the  best  place  for  it,  and  as 
far  forward  as  would  admit  of  the  sail  doing  its  work. 

Several  years  ago  two  ancient  vessels  were  found  in  Den- 
mark, embedded  in  the  sand,  one  of  which  was  seventy-two 
feet  long  and  nine  feet  wide  amidships,  and  the  other  iorty-two 
feet  long,  containing  two  eight-sided  spars,  twenty-four  feet 
long. 

It  must  be  accorded  to  the  Vikings  that  they  possessed  some 
nautical  skill,  and  to  some  extent  could  calculate  the  course  of 
the  sun  and  moon,  with  some  knowledge  of  measuring  time  by 
the  stars.  Their  methods  were  necessarily  crude,  and  at  times 
must  have  proved  very  faulty.  As  the  mariner's  compass  was 
unknown  in  Europe  till  late  in  the  twelfth  century,  it  could  not 
have  been  used  among  the  Scandinavians  until  some  time  later. 


THE  SAGAS  AND  AMERICA.  17 


CHAPTER  III. 


THE  SAGAS  AND  AMERICA. 

The  manuscript  in  which  are  the  narrations  of  the  discovery 
of  Vinland — or,  as  some  would  have  it,  America — is  known  as 
the  Codex  Flatoyensis,  written  about  the  year  1400;  certainly 
not  earlier  than  1394,  because  annals  are  brought  down  to  that 
time.  The  year  when  Leif  Erikson  is  said  to  have  discovered 
America  is  variously  given;  but  from  the  various  narrations 
the  time  may  be  approximately  fixed  at  1000.  It  would  then 
appear  that  the  event  remained  one  solely  of  tradition  for  a 
period  of  four  hundred  y  ars,  kept  alive  by  being  repeated  dur- 
ing the  long  winter  nights  by  not  less  than  twelve  generations 
of  men. 

The  Codex  Flatoyensis  was  unknown  until  the  seventeenth 
century,  when  it  was  tound  in  the  possession  of  John  Finsson, 
who  dwelt  in  Flatey,  in  Breidafirth,  and  who  stated  he  had 
obtained  it  from  his  grandfather.  It  is  claimed  that  the  writing 
is  the  work  of  two  priests,  John  Thordsson  and  Magnus  Thor- 
hallsson.  It  contains  a  large  number  of  sagas,  poems,  and 
stories,  thrown  together  in  strange  confusion  and  wholly  with- 
out criticism.  No  other  manuscript  confuses  things  on  so  vast 
a  scale.  In  this  codex  is  the  saga  of  Olaf  Tryggvesson,  wherein 
the  voyages  of  Leif  Erikson  are  described.  The  saga  of  Erik 
the  Red,  one  of  the  chief  narratives  depended  upon  by  the 
advocates  of  the  Norse  discovery,  is  in  the  same  codex.  The 
other  principal  saga  on  this  subject  is  that  of  Thorfinn  Karlsefne, 
which  goes  over  the  same  ground  covered  by  that  of  Erik  the 
Red. 

The  accounts  of  these  voyages  as  given  in  the  originals,  or 
even  in  the  translations,  are  too  numerous  and  prolix  to  be  re- 
produced in  this  place.  In  order  to  present  a  clear  understand- 
ing, an  abstract  of  some  of  the  sagas  will  be  necessary. 

According  to  the  Codex  Flatoyensis,  one  of  Erik's  compan- 
ions was  Heriult  Bardson,  who  had  a  son  Biarne.  This  Biarne 
was  absent  in  Norway  at  the  time  his  father  went  to  Greenland 
with  Erik.  When  he  returned  to  Iceland  he  resolved  to  spend 
the  following  winter  with  his  father,  and  to  that  end  set  sail  for 
Greenland.  As  neither  himself  nor  any  of  his  companions  had 
ever  navigated  these  seas  before,  he  became  lost  in  the  fog  that 
had  set  in.  When  the  weather  cleared  up  they  found  them- 


18  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

selves  in  sight  ot  a  strange  land  to  larboard.  They  again 
sighted  land  after  two  days'  sail;  and  three  days  still  later  they 
came  in  sight  of  land  that  proved  to  be  an  island.  They  bore 
away,  and  in  three  days'  sailing  reached  Greenland.  The  news 
of  this  discovery  having  come  to  the  ears  of  Leif,  son  of  Erik 
the  Red,  he  determined  to  explore  this  newly-found  land;  so  he 
purchased  Biarne's  vessel,  and,  with  thirty-two  men,  sailed  in 
the  direction  that  had  been  indicated.  The  first  land  sighted 
was  that  which  Biarne  had  seen  last,  and  here  they  landed  and 
called  it  Helluland.  To  them  it  appeared  to  have  no  advan- 
tages, for  in  the  up-country  were  large  snowy  mountains,  and 
from  there  down  to  the  sea  was  one  field  of  snow.  They  then 
put  to  sea,  and  soon  came  to  another  land,  which  was  flat  and 
overgrown  with  wood.  This  they  called  Markland.  They  put 
to  sea  again,  with  the  wind  from  the  northeast,  and  after  two 
days  made  land.  They  landed  upon  an  island,  where  they 
found  the  dew  upon  the  grass  was  sweeter  than  anything  they 
had  ever  tasted.  Next  they  sailed  into  a  sound  that  was  between 
the  island  and  a  ness  that  went  out  northward  from  the  land, 
and  sailed  westward,  and  thence  went  on  shore  at  a  place  where 
a  river,  issuing  from  a  lake,  fell  into  the  sea.  They  brought 
their  ship  into  the  lake,  and  resolved  to  winter  there:  and  for 
that  purpose  erected  a  large  house  on  the  shore.  With  them 
was  a  south  countryman  named  Tyrker,  who  had  a  high  fore- 
head, sharp  eyes,  with  a  small  face,  and  was  little  in  size,  and 
ugly.  This  man  found  grapes  during  the  winter.  With  this 
they  loaded  their  boat,  and  having  loaded  the  vessel  with  wood, 
they  returned  to  Greenland  when  spring  arrived.  The  last  land 
visited  they  called  Vinland. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  narration  of  this,  the  first  voyage 
of  Leif,  is  exceedingly  indefinite.  To  tell  what  land  was  re- 
ferred to  would  be  an  utter  impossibility.  Practically  there  is  no 
description  of  the  coast.  The  time  occupied  in  the  voage  be- 
tween Greenland  and  the  first  point  of  landing  is  not  given. 
The  distance  between  Cape  Farewell,  the  most  southerly  point 
of  Greenland,  and  Newfoundland  is  about  six  hundred  miles. 
According  to  the  saga  of  Erik  the  Red  twenty-five  ships  started 
for  Greenland  from  Iceland,  only  fourteen  of  which  reached  that 
country;  the  rest  were  either  lost  or  driven  back.  No  account 
of  the  voyage  out  or  the  return  is  given  in  this  expedition  of 
Leif.  Even  if  only  the  coast  of  Labrador  was  reached,  there 
was  er.ough  there  to  be  seen,  with  the  experience  of  the  voyage, 
to  have  aroused  necessary  recitations.  One  might  as  well 
search  for  Gulliver's  Luggnagg.  As  to  the  matter  of  grapes, 
these  Icelanders  did  not  know  what  grapes  were,  for  they  had 
never  seen  a  grape-vine.  As  to  Tyrker,  the  very  description  of 
him  indicates  that  it  was  a  character  thrown  in  to  assist  the 
tale.  Calling  the  country  Vinland,  or  Wine-land,  was  no  proof 
of  wine,  for  Erik  the  Red  boasted  that  he  so  named  Greenland 


THE  SAGAS  AND  AMERICA.  19 

that  the  people  would  think  it  was  a  good  land,  and  hence 
would  have  a  desire  to  remove  there.  The  sweet  dew  upon 
the  grass  and  the  frosts  and  snows  are  somewhat  incongruous. 

The  saga  contradicts  its  first  narrative  by  affirming  that  Leif 
discovered  Vinland  the  Good  at  the  time  King  Olaf  sent  him  to 
Greenland  to  proclaim  Christianity,  and  during  his  passage  from 
Iceland  to  Greenland. 

Alter  Leif 's  return  his  brother  Thorwald,  with  thirty  men, 
set  out  for  Vinland.  Nothing  is  related  of  the  voyage  until 
they  came  to  the  booths  put  up  by  Leif  in  Vinland.  Here  they 
wintered.  When  the  spring  opened  Thorwald  sent  the  long- 
boat westward  along  the  coast.  They  found  many  islands,  but 
no  abode  for  man  and  beast,  "but  on  an  island  far  towards  the 
west  they  found  a  corn  barn,  constructed  of  wood.  They  iound 
no  other  traces  of  human  work."  The  next  spring  the  ship 
proceeded  eastward  and  towards  the  north,  when  it  was  driven 
upon  the  land  and  broke  the  keel.  While  here  they  killed  eight 
natives  at  one  time.  "Then  a  great  drowsiness  came  upon 
them  and  they  could  not  keep  themselves  awake,  but  all  of 
them  fell  asleep.  A  sudden  scream  came  to  them,  and  they  all 
awoke;  and  mixed  with  the  scream  they  thought  they  heard 
the  words:  'Awake,  Thorwald,  with  all  thy,  comrades,  if  ye 
will  save  thy  lives.  Go  on  board  your  ship  as  fast  as  vou  can, 
and  leave  this  land  without  delay'."  They  were  attacked  by 
innumerable  Skraellings,  who  succeeded  in  killing  Thorwald 
with  an  arrow.  The  following  spring  they  returned  to  Green- 
land. 

In  this  narrative  it  will  be  noticed  that  they  had  no  difficulty 
in  finding  the  booths  of  Leif.  Having  found  them,  they  went 
•westward  and  came  upon  a  "corn  barn  constructed  of  wood." 
Whence  came  this  barn?  Our  ingenious  annotators  are  ready 
with  an  answer:  "A  building  ot  this  character  would  point  to 
Europeans,  who,  according  to  minor  narratives,  preceded  the 
Icelanders  to  America."* 

Thorstein,  third  son  of  Erik  the  Red,  set  out  in  the  same  ship 
for  Vinland,  to  bring  back  his  brother's  body.  He  was  accom- 
panied by  his  wife  Gudrid  and  twenty  five  men,  but  after  being 
tossed  about  on  the  ocean  the  whole  summer  without  knowing 
where  they  were,  they  finally  landed  in  Greenland,  in  the  west- 
ern settlements.  In  the  continuation  of  the  story  of  Thorstein 
we  have  a  narrative  of  the  miraculous.  Thorstein  dies  in  the 
house  of  Thorstein  Black.  "Now  Thorstein  Erickson's  illness 
increased  upon  him,  and  he  died,  which  Gudrid,  his  wife,  took 
with  great  grief.  They  were  all  in  the  room,  and  Gudrid  had 
set  herself  upon  a  stool  before  the  bench  on  which  her  husband 
Thorstein's  body  lay.  Now  Thorstein  the  Goodman  took  Gud- 
rid from  the  stool  in  his  arms,  and  set  himself  with  her  upon  a 

*Pre-ColumbIan  Discovery,  p.  108. 


20  PRE  COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

bench  just  opposite  to  Thorstein's  body,  and  spoke  much  with 
her.  He  consoled  her,  and  promised  to  go  with  her  in  summer 
to  Eriksfiord,  with  her  husband  Thorstein's  corpse,  and  those  of 
his  crew.  'And,'  said  he,  'I  shall  take  with  me  many  servants 
to  console  and  assist.'  She  thanked  him  for  this.  Thorstein 
Ericson  then  raised  himself  up  and  said,  'Where  is  Gudrid?' 
And  thrice  he  said  this;  but  she  was  silent.  Then  she  said  to 
Thorstein  the  Goodman,  'Shall  1  give  answer  or  not?'  He  told 
her  not  to  answer.  Then  went  Thorstein  the  Goodman  across 
the  room  and  sat  down  in  a  chair,  and  Gudrid  set  herselt  on 
his  knee;  and  Thorstein  the  Goodman  said,  'What  wilt  thou 
make  known?'  After  awhile  the  corpse  replies:  'I  wish  to  tell 
Gudrid  her  fate  beforehand,  that  she  may  be  the  better,  able  to 
bear  my  death;  for  I  have  come  to  a  blessed  resting  place. 
This  I  have  now  to  tell  thee,  Gudrid,  that  thou  wilt  be  married 
to  an  Iceland  man,  and  ye  will  live  long  together,  and  from  you 
will  descend  many  men — brave,  gallant  and  wise,  and  a  well- 
pleasing  race  of  posterity.  Ye  shall  go  from  Greenland  to 
Norway,  and  from  thence  to  Iceland,  where  ye  shall  dwell. 
Long  will  ye  live  together,  but  thou  will  survive  him;  and  then 
thou  shalt  go  abroad,  and  so  southward,  and  shall  return  to  thy 
home  in  Iceland.  And  there  must  a  church  be  built,  and  thou 
must  remain  there  and  be  consecrated  a  nun,  and  there  end  thy 
days.' "  All  of  which  came  to  pass.  The  face  of  the  story 
shows  it  to  be  a  monkish  fiction. 

The  next  voyage  to  Vinland  was  made  by  Thorfinn  Karl- 
sefne,  a  trader.  In  the  summer  of  1006  he  fitted  out  his  ship 
in  Iceland  for  a  voyage  to  Greenland,  attended  by  Snorre  Thor- 
brandson  and  a  crew  of  forty  men.  At  the  same  time  another 
ship  was  fitted  out  for  the  same  destination  by  Biarne  Grimolf- 
son  and  Thorhall  Gamlason,  also  with  a  crew  of  forty  men.  In 
the  autumn  of  the  same  year  both  ships  arrived  safely  at  Eriks- 
fiord, in  Greenland.  Here  Thorfinn  fell  in  love  with  Gudrid, 
widow  of  Thorstein,  and  with  Leif 's  consent  married  her  that 
winter.  In  the  spring  of  1007  three  ships  were  fitted  out  for 
an  expedition  to  Vinland.  Thorfinn  fitted  out  his,  and  Biarne 
Grimofson  and  Thorhall  Gamlason  put  their  ships  into  shape, 
and  the  third  was  commanded  by  Thorward,  on  board  of  which 
was  an  attache  of  Erik  named  Thorhall.  As  this  voyage  is 
recognized  to  have  been  the  most  important  of  all  the  Norse 
voyages  to  Vinland,  and  as  the  narrative  is  the  most  complete, 
it  is  here  given  in  full.  In  order  to  be  wholly  impartial  in  this 
quotation,  I  have  given  it  as  found  in  De  Costa's  "  Pre-Colum- 
bian Discovery." 

"They  sailed  to  the  west  district  and  thence  to  Biarney; 
hence  they  sailed  south  a  night  and  a  day.  Then  land  was 
seen,  and  they  launched  a  boat  and  explored  the  land;  they  found 
great  flat  stones,  many  of  which  were  twelve  ells  broad.  There 
were  a  great  number  of  foxes  there.  They  called  the  land 


THE  SAGAS  AND  AMERICA.  21 

Hclluland.  Then  they  sailed  a  day  and  a  night  in  a  southerly 
course,  and  came  to  a  land  covered  with  woods,  in  which  there 
were  many  wild  animals.  Beyond  this  land,  to  the  southeast, 
lay  an  island,  on  which  they  slew  a  bear.  They  called  the 
island  Bear  Island,  and  the  land  Markland.  Thence  they  sailed 
long  south  by  the  land  and  came  to  a  cape.  The  land  lay  on 
the  right  side  of  the  ship,  and  there  were  long  shores  of  sand. 
They  came  to  land,  and  found  on  the  cape  the  keel  of  a  ship, 
from  which  they  called  the  place  Kiarlarness,  and  the  shores 
Wonderstrand,  because  it  seemed  so  long  sailing  by.  Then 
the  land  became  indented  with  coves,  and  thev  ran  the  ship  into 
a  bay,  whither  they  directed  their  course.  King  Olat  Trygg- 
vesson  had  given  Leif  two  Scots,  a  man  named  Haki  and  a 
woman  named  Hekia;  they  were  swifter  of  foot  than  wild  ani- 
mals. These  were  in  Karlsefne'sship.  When  they  had  passed 
beyond  Wonderstrand,  they  put  these  Scots  ashore,  and  told 
them  to  run  over  the  land  to  the  southwest  three  days,  and  dis- 
cover the  nature  of  the  land,  and  then  return.  They  had  a  kind 
of  garment  that  they  called  Kiafal,  that  was  so  made  that  a  hat 
was  on  top,  and  it  was  open  at  the  sides,  and  no  arms;  fastened 
between  the  legs  with  a  button  and  strap;  otherwise  they  were 
naked.  When  they  returned  one  had  in  his  hand  a  bunch  of 
grapes,  and  the  other  a  spear  of  wheat.  They  went  on  board, 
and  afterward  the  course  was  obstructed  by  another  bay.  Be- 
yond this  bay  was  an  island,  on  each  side  of  which  was  a  rapid 
current,  that  they  called  the  Isle  of  Currrents.  There  was  so 
great  a  number  of  eider  ducks  there  that  they  could  hardly  step 
without  treading  on  iheir  eggs.  They  called  this  place  Stream 
Bay.  Here  they  brought  their  ships  to  land,  and  prepared  to 
stay.  They  had  with  them  all  kinds  of  cattle.  The  situation 
of  the  place  was  pleasant,  but  they  did  not  care  for  anything 
except  to  explore  the  land.  Here  they  wintered  without  suffi- 
cient food.  The  next  summer,  failing  to  catch  fish,  they  began 
to  want  food.  Then  Thorhall  the  hunter  disappeared.  They 
found  Thorhall,  whom  they  sought  three  days,  on  the  top  of  a 
rock,  where  he  lay  breathing,  blowing  through  his  nose  and 
mouth,  and  muttering.  They  asked  why  he  had  gone  there. 
He  replied  that  this  was  nothing  that  concerned  them.  They 
said  that  he  should  go  home  with  them,  which  he  did.  After- 
ward a  whale  was  cast  ashore  in  that  place;  and  they  assembled 
and  cut  it  up,  not  knowing  what  kind  of  a  whale  it  was.  They 
boiled  it  with  water  and  ate  it,  and  were  taken  sick.  Then 
Thorhall  said:  'Now  you  see  that  Thor  is  more  prompt  to  give 
aid  than  your  Christ.  This  was  cast  ashore  as  a  reward  for  the 
hymn  which  I  composed  to  my  patron  Thor,  who  rarely  for- 
sakes me.'  When  they  knew  this,  they  cast  all  the  remains  of 
the  whale  into  the  sea,  and  commended  their  affairs  to  God. 
After  which  the  air  became  milder,  and  opportunities  were 
given  for  fishing.  From  that  time  there  was  an  abundance  of 


22  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

food;  and  there  were  beasts  on  the  land,  eggs  in  the  island  and 
fish  in  the  sea. 

"They  say  that  Thorhall  desired  to  go  northward  around 
Wonderstrand  to  explore  Vinland,  but  Karlsefne  wished  to  go 
along  the  shore  south.  Then  Thorhall  prepared  himself  at  the 
island,  but  did  not  have  more  than  nine  men  is  his  whole  com- 
pany, and  all  the  others  went  in  the  company  of  Karlsefne. 
Thorhall  sailed  north  to  go  around  Wonderstrand  and  Kiarlar- 
ness,  but  when  he  wished  to  sail  westward,  they  were  met  by  a 
storm  from  the  west  and  driven  to  Ireland,  where  they  were 
beaten  and  made  slaves.  As  merchants  reported,  there  Thor- 
hall died.  It  is  said  that  Karlsefne,  with  Snorre  and  Biarne  and 
his  comrades,  sailed  along  the  coast  south.  They  sailed  long 
until  the)'  came  to  a  river  flowing  down  from  the  land  through 
a  lake  into  the  sea,  where  there  were  sandy  shoals,  where  it 
was  impossible  to  pass  up,  except  with  the  highest  tide.  Karl- 
sefne sailed  up  to  the  mouth  of  the  river  with  his  folk,  and 
called  the  place  Hop.  Having  come  to  the  land,  they  saw  that 
where  it  was  low  corn  grew;  and  where  it  was  higher,  vines 
were  found.  Every  river  was  full  of  fish.  They  dug  pits  were 
the  land  began,  and  where  the  land  was  higher;  and  when  the 
tide  went  down  there  were  sacred  fish  in  the  pits.  There  were 
a  great  number  of  all  kinds  of  wild  beasts  in  the  woods.  They 
stayed  there  half  a  month  and  enjoyed  themselves,  and  did  not 
notice  anything;  they  had  their  cattle  with  them.  Early  one 
morning,  when  they  looked  around,  they  saw  a  great  many 
skin  boats,  and  poles  were  swung  upon  them,  and  it  sounded 
like  reeds  shaken  by  the  wind,  and  they  pointed  to  the  sun. 
Then  said  Karlsefne, 'What  may  this  mean?'  Snorre  Thor- 
brandson  replied,  'It  may  be  that  this  is  a  sign  of  peace,  so  let 
us  take  a  white  shield  and  hold  it  toward  them.'  They  did  so. 
Thereupon  they  rowed  toward  them,  wondering  at  them,  and 
came  to  land,  These  people  were  swarthy  and  fierce,  and  had 
bushy  hair  upon  their  heads;  they  had  very  large  eyes  and 
broad  cheeks.  They  staid  there  for  a  time,  and  gazed  upon 
those  they  met,  and  afterward  rowed  away  southward  around 
the  ness. 

"Karlsefne  and  his  people  had  made  their  houses  above  the 
lake,  and  some  of  their  houses  were  near  the  lake,  and  others 
more  distant.  They  wintered  there,  and  there  was  no  snow, 
and  all  their  cattle  fed  themselves  on  the  grass.  But  when 
spring  came  they  saw,  early  one  morning,  that  a  number  of 
canoes  rowed  from  the  south  around  the  ness;  so  many,  as  if 
the  sea  were  sown  with  coal;  poles  were  also  swung  on  each 
boat.  Karlsefne  and  his  people  then  raised  up  the  shield,  and 
when  they  came  together  they  began  to  trade.  These  people 
would  rather  have  red  cloth;  for  this  they  offered  skins  and 
real  furs.  They  would  also  buy  swords  and  spears,  but  this 
Karlsefne  and  Snorre  forbade.  For  a  whole  fur  skin,  the 


THE  SAGAS  AND  AMERICA.  23 

Skraellings  took  a  piece  of  red  cloth  a  span  long,  and  bound  it 
round  their  heads.  Thus  went  on  their  traffic  for  a  time.  Next 
the  cloth  began  to  be  scarce  with  Karlsefne  and  his  people,  and 
they  cut  it  up  into  small  pieces,  which  were  not  wider  than  a 
finger's  breadth,  and  yet  the  Skraellings  gave  just  as  much  as 
before,  and  more.  It  happened  that  a  bull  which  Karlsefne  had 
ran  out  of  the  wood  and  roared  aloud;  this  frightened  the 
Skraellings,  and  they  rushed  to  their  canoes  and  rowed  away 
toward  the  south.  After  that  they  were  not  seen  for  three 
whole  weeks.  But  at  the  end  of  that  time  a  great  number  of 
Skraellings'  ships  were  seen  coming  from  the  south  like  a  rush- 
ing torrent,  all  the  poles  turned  from  the  sun,  and  they  all  yelled 
very  loud.  Then  Karlsefne  took  a  red  shield  and  held  it  toward 
them.  The  Skraellings  leaped  out  of  their  vessels,  and  after 
this  they  went  against  each  other  and  fought.  There  was  a  hot 
shower  of  weapons,  because  the  Skraellings  had  slings.  Karl- 
sefne's  people  saw  that  they  raised  upon  a  pole  a  very  large 
ball,  something  like  a  sheep's  paunch,  and  of  a  blue  color;  this 
they  swung  from  the  pole  over  Karlselne's  men  upon  the  ground, 
and  it  made  a  great  noise  as  it  fell  down.  This  caused  great 
fear  with  Karlsefne  and  his  men,  so  that  they  only  thought  of 
running  away;  and  they  retreated  along  the  river,  for  it  seemed 
to  them  that  the  Skraellings  pressed  them  on  all  sides.  They 
did  not  stop  until  they  came  to  some  rocks,  where  they  made  a 
bold  stand.  Freydis  came  out  and  saw  that  Karlsefne's  people 
fell  back,  and  she  cried  out,  'Why  do  you  run,  strong  men  as 
you  are,  before  those  miserable  creatures  whom  I  thought  you 
would  knock  down  like  cattle?  If  I  had  arms,  melhinks  I  could 
fight  better  than  you.'  They  gave  no  heed  to  her  words.  Freydis 
would  go  with  them,  but  she  was  slower  because  she  was  preg- 
nant; still  she  followed  after  them  in  the  woods.  She  found  a 
dead  man  in  the  woods;  it  was  Thorbrand  Snorreson,  and  there 
stood  a  flat  stone  stuck  in  his  head;  the  sword  lay  naked  by 
his  side.  This  she  took  up  and  made  ready  to  defend  herself. 
Then  came  the  Skraellings  toward  her;  she  drew  out  her  breasts 
from  under  her  clothes,  and  dashed  them  against  the  naked 
sword.  By  this  the  Skraellings  became  frightened,  and  ran  off 
to  their  ships  and  rowed  away.  Karlsefne  and  his  men  then 
came  up  and  praised  her  courage.  Two  men  fell  on  Karlsefne's 
side,  but  a  number  of  the  Skraellings.  Karlsefne's  band  was 
overmatched.  Next  they  went  home  to  their  dwellings  and 
bound  up  their  wounds,  and  considered  what  crowd  that  was 
that  pressed  upon  them  from  the  land  side.  It  now  seemed  to 
them  that  it  could  have  hardly  been  real  people  from  the 
ships,  but  that  there  must  have  been  optical  illusions.  The 
Skraellings  also  found  a  dead  man,  and  an  axe  lay  by  him; 
one  ot  them  took  up  the  axe  and  cut  wood  with  it,  and  then 
one  after  another  did  the  same,  and  thought  it  was  a  fine  thing 
and  cut  well.  After  that,  one  took  it  and  cut  at  a  stone,  so  that 


24  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

the  axe  broke,  and  then  they  thought  that  the  axe  was  of  no 
use,  because  it  would  not  cut  a  stone,  and  they  cast  it  away. 
Karlsefne  and  his  people  now  thought  thev  saw  that,  although 
the  land  had  many  good  qualities,  they  still  would  always  be 
exposed  to  the  tear  ot  attacks  from  the  original  dwellers.  They 
decided,  therefore,  to  go  away  and  to  return  to  their  own  land. 
They  sailed  northward  along  the  shore,  and  found  five  Skrael- 
lings,  clad  in  skins,  sleeping  near  the  sea.  They  had  with  them 
vessels  containing  animal  marrow  mixed  with  blood.  Karl- 
sefne's  people  thought  that  these  men  had  been  banished  from 
the  land;  they  killed  them.  After  that  they  came  to  a  ness,  and 
many  wild  beasts  were  there,  and  the  ness  was  covered  all  over 
with  dung  from  the  beasts,  which  had  lain  there  during  the 
night.  Now  they  came  back  to  Straumfiord,  and  there  was  a 
plenty  of  everything  that  they  wanted  to  have.  [It  is  thus  that 
some  men  say  that  Biarne  and  Gudrid  stayed  behind,  and  one 
hundred  men  with  them,  and  did  not  go  farther;  but  that  Karl- 
sefne and  Snorre  went  south  ward,  and  forty  men  with  them,  and 
were  no  longer  in  Hop  than  barely  two  months,  and  the  same 
summer  came  back.]  Karlsefne  then  went  with  one  ship  to 
seek  Thorhall  the  hunter,  but  the  rest  remained'  behind,  and 
they  sailed  northward  past  Kiarlarness,  and  thence  westward, 
and  the  land  was  upon  their  larboard  hand.  There  were  wild 
woods  over  all,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  see,  and  scarcely  any 
open  places.  When  they  had  sailed  long  a  river  ran  out  of 
the  land  east  and  west.  They  sailed  into  the  mouth  of  the  river 
and  lay  by  its  bank. 

"It  chanced  one  morning  that  Karlsefne  and  his  people  saw 
opposite,  in  an  open  place  in  the  woods,  a  speck  which  glittered 
in  their  sight,  and  they  called  out  towards  it,  and  it  was  a  Uniped, 
which  thereupon  hurried  down  to  the  bank  of  the  river  where 
they  lay.  Thorwald  Erikson  stood  at  the  helm,  and  the  Uniped 
shot  an  arrow  into  his  bowels.  Thorwald  drew  out  the  arrow 
and  said:  'It  has  killed  me!  To  a  rich  land  we  have  come,  but 
hardly  shall  we  enjoy  any  benefit  from  it.'  Thorwald  soon  after 
died  of  his  wound.  Upon  this  the  Uniped  ran  away  to  the 
northward.  Karlsefne  and  his  people  went  after  him,  and  saw 
him  now  and  then,  and  the  last  time  they  saw  him  he  ran  into 
a  bay.  They  drew  off  to  the  northward,  and  saw  the  country 
of  the  Unipeds,  but  they  would  not  then  expose  their  men  any 
longer.  They  locked  upon  the  mountain  range  that  was  at 
Hop  and  that  which  they  now  found  as  all  one,  and  it  also  ap- 
peared to  be  of  equal  length  from  Straumfiord  to  both  places. 
The  third  winter  they  were  in  Straumfiord.  They  now  became 
much  divided  by  party  feeling,  and  the  women  were  the  cause 
of  it,  for  those  who  were  unmarried  would  injure  those  who 
were  married,  and  hence  arose  great  disturbance.  There  was 
born  the  first  autumn,  Snorre,  Karlsefne's  son,  and  he  was  three 
years  old  when  they  went  away.  When  they  sailed  from  Vm- 


THE  SAGAS  AND  AMERICA.  25 

land  they  had  a  south  wind,  and  then  came  to  Markland,  and 
found  there  five  Skrasllings,  and  one  was  bearded;  two  were 
females  and  two  were  boys;  they  took  the  boys,  but  the  others 
escaped,  and  the  Skraellings  sank  down  in  the  ground.  These 
boys  they  took  with  them;  they  taught  them  the  language,  and 
they  were  baptized.  They  called  their  mother  Vathelldi,  and 
their  father  Uvaege.  They  said  that  two  kings  ruled  over  the 
Skrsellings,  and  that  one  was  named  Avalldania,  but  the  other 
Valldidia.  They  said  that  no  houses  were  there.  People  lived 
in  caves  or  in  holes  They  said  there  was  a  land  on  the  other 
side,  just  opposite  their  country,  where  people  lived  who  wore 
white  clothes  and  carried  poles  before  them,  and  to  these  were 
fastened  flags;  and  they  shouted  loud,  and  the  people  think  that 
this  was  White-man's  land,  or  Great  Ireland. 

"Biarne  Grimolfson  was  driven  with  his  ship  into  the  Irish 
ocean,  and  they  came  into  a  worm  sea,  and  soon  the  ship  began 
to  sink  under  them.  They  had  a  boat  which  was  smeared  with 
sea  oil,  for  the  worms*  do  not  attack  that.  They  went  into  the 
boat,  and  then  saw  that  it  would  not  hold  them  all.  Then  said 
Biarne:  'As  the  boat  will  not  hold  more  than  half  of  our  men, 
it  is  my  counsel  that  lots  should  be  drawn  for  those  to  go  in  the 
boat,  for  it  shall  not  be  according  to  rank.'  This  they  all 
thought  so  generous  an  offer  that  no  one  would  oppose  it.  They 
then  did  so,  that  lots  were  drawn,  and  it  fell  to  Biarne  to  go  in 
the  boat,  and  the  half  of  the'  men  with  him,  for  the  boat  had 
not  room  for  more.  But  when  they  had  gotten  into  the  boat, 
an  Icelandic  man  that  was  in  the  ship,  and  had  come  with  Biarne 
from  Iceland  said:  'Dost  thou  mean,  Biarne,  to  leave  me  here?' 
Biarne  said:  'So  it  seems.'  Then  said  the  other:  'Very  different 
was  the  promise  to  my  father  when  I  went  with  thee  from  Ice- 
land, than  thus  to  leave  me,  for  thou  said  that  we  should  both 
share  the  same  fate.'  Biarne  said:  'It  shall  not  be  thus;  go 
down  into  the  boat,  and  I  will  go  up  into  the  ship,  since  I  see 
that  thou  art  so  anxious  to  live.'  Then  Biarne  went  up  into  the 
ship  and  this  man  down  into  the  boat,  and  after  that  they  went 
on  their  voyage  until  they  came  to  Dublin,  in  Ireland,  and  there 
told  these  things;  but  it  is  most  people's  belief  that  Biarne  and 
his  companions  were  lost  in  the  worm  sea,  for  nothing  was  heard 
cf  them  after  that  time."f 

Another  account  of  this  expedition  differs  somewhat  from  the 
one  just  given.  According  to  the  second,  the  expedition,  carry- 
ing one  hundred  and  forty  men,  first  sailed  to  Westbygd  and 
Biarney  Isle.  They  left  the  latter  place  with  a  north  wind,  and 
after  a  day  and  a  night  came  to  Helluland.  After  another  day 

*It  Is  but  just  here  to  remark  that'Vicary  uses  the  word  snakes,  and  says:  "The 
story  of  Biarne  sailing  into  a  sea  on  the  coast  of  Ireland  so  full  of  snakes  that  the 
ship  sank,  while  half  the  people  on  board  the  ship  were  saved  in  a  small  boat,  is  not 
credible". — Saga  Times,  p.  £0i. 

tPp.  121-137. 


26  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

and  a  nights'  sail  they  reached  Bear  Island.  Another  sail,  occu- 
pying the  same  length  of  time,  brought  them  to  Kiarlarness, 
and  called  the  shore  Wonderstrand;  and  here  they  put  the  two 
Scots — Hake  and  Hekia — and  told  them  to  run  southward  and 
explore  the  country.  Three  days  later  they  returned  with  a 
vine  and  self-sown  wheat.  Thence  the  ships  proceeded  to 
Straumfiord,  where  they  landed  and  prepared  habitations,  and 
here  they  wintered.  They  were  in  want  of  food,  and  failed  to 
catch  fish,  as  the  winter  was  severe.  They  sailed  over  the 
island,  hoping  to  obtain  subsistence,  but  only  found  little  better 
fare.  They  prayed  to  God  to  send  food,  without  answer.  Then 
Thorhall  disappeared,  but  after  three  days  was  found  by  Karl- 
sefne  and  Biarne  lying  on  top  of  a  rock,  and  having  asked  him 
to  go  home  with  them  he  complied.  After  that  a  whale  was 
cast  up,  and  they  partook  of  it,  and  all  were  made  sick.  Thor- 
hall boasted  the  whale  was  given  in  answer  to  a  hymn  he  had 
composed  to  Thor.  When  they  heard  this  they  would  not  par- 
take any  more,  but  threw  what  was  left  from  the  rock  and 
committed  themselves  to  God;  then  there  was  no  lack  of  food. 
The  company  now  parted,  Thorhall,  with  nine  men,  going 
northward  to  explore  Vinland,  and  Karlsefne,  with  the  rest, 
went  south.  "Thereupon  Thorhall  sailed  northward  around 
Wonderstrand  and  Kiarlarness,  but  when  they  wished  to  cruise 
westward  a  storm  came  against  them  and  drove  them  to  Ireland, 
where  they  were  beaten  and  nfa.de  slaves.  There  Thorhall 
passed  his  life."  Karlsefne  and  his  party  sailed  south.  "They 
sailed  long  until  they  came  to  a  river  which  flowed  from  the 
land  through  a  lake,  and  passed  into  the  sea.  Before  the  mouth 
of  the  river  were  great  islands,  and  they  were  not  able  to  enter 
the  river  except  at  the  highest  tide  "  They  called  the  land 
Hop,  and  there  found  wild  corn  and  vines.  Here  they  spent 
the  winter,  when  no  snow  fell.  Here  they  caught  the  two 
Skraelling  boys.  Thence  they  went  to  Greenland  and  passed 
the  winter  with  Leif  Erikson. 

In  this  second  account  the  distance  from  Greenland  to  Vin- 
land is  definitely  given  as  three  days'  sail.  While  the  two 
accounts  are  substantially  the  same,  yet  there  is  some  material 
difference.  The  winter  they  were  pressed  for  food,  the  second 
account  narrates,  "they  sailed  over  the  island,  hoping  that  they 
might  find  means  of  subsistence,"  while  in  the  first  this  import- 
ant event  is  entirely  omitted.  The  battle  with  the  Skrasllings, 
the  most  striking  of  all  the  events  in  the  three  narratives,  is 
entirely  omitted  in  the  second  and  differs  materially  in  the  third. 
That  no  snow  should  fall  in  the  Eastern  United  States  would  be 
a  remarkable  event.  A  like  occurrence  is  not  mentioned  since 
the  landing  of  the  Pilgrims.  It  must  have  been  very  striking 
even  to  a  Norsemen,  and  yet  entirely  omitted  in  the  first  and 
third  Narratives.  The  second  account  declares  that  Biarne  was 
carried  into  the  Greenland  Sea,  where  he  came  into  the  "worm 


THE  SAGAS  AND  AMERICA.  27 

sea;"  but  does  not  state  where  the  ship's  crew  landed,  but  allows 
us  to  suppose  they  landed  in  Greenland. 

The  third  narrative  does  not  mention  Biarne  and  Thorhall.but 
says  that  Karlsefne  was  pursuaded  by  Gudrid  and  others,  and 
the  expedition  set  out  with  sixty  men  and  five  women,  with  the 
agreement  that  all  should  share  alike  in  what  they  gained.  "They 
put  to  sea  and  came  to  Leif's  houses  safe  and  carried  up  their 
goods."  Soon  after  a  whale  was  driven  ashore,  and  they  had 
plenty  of  food.  No  account  of  its  having  made  them  sick  is 
given.  No  account  of  their  starving  is  given.  The  Skraellings 
came,  and  when  they  saw  the  milk  and  dairy  products  they 
would  buy  nothing  else,  and  the  trade  was  such  that  the  Skrael- 
lings "  carried  away  their  winnings  in  their  stomachs."  When 
they  became  frightened  at  the  bellowing  of  the  bull  they  sought 
refuge  in  the  houses,  but  were  prevented  entering  by  Karlsefne. 
The  house  was  now  strengthened  for  defense  by  building  around 
it  a  strong  fence.  In  the  beginning  of  the  following  winter  the 
Skraellings,  in  greater  numbers,  returned  and  threw  their  bun- 
dles over  the  fence,  for  which  they  received  the  same  as  before. 
While  Gudrid  sat  in  the  door,  "there  came  a  shadow  to  the 
door,  and  a  woman  went  in  with  a  black  kirtle  on,  rather  short, 
with  a  snood  around  her  head;  clear,  yellow  hair;  pale,  with 
large  eyes,  so  large  that  none  ever  saw  such  eyes  in  a  human 
head.  She  went  to  where  Gudrid  was  sitting,  and  said  :  '  What 
art  thou  called?'  'I  am  called  Gudrid;  and  what  art  thou 
called?'  'I  am  called  Gudrid,'  said  she.  Then  the  good  wife 
Gudrid  put  out  her  hand  to  her,  that  she  might  sit  down  beside 
her.  At  the  same  time  Gudrid  heard  a  great  noise,  and  the 
woman  had  vanished."  No  one  else  saw  this  strange  woman. 
At  the  same  time  one  of  Karlsefne's  men  killed  one  of  the  Skrael- 
lings. Soon  after  they  had  a  battle,  in  which  many  of  the 
Skraellings  fell.  Here  Karlsefne  stayed  the  whole  winter,  and  in 
the  spring  returned  to  Greenland.  In  this  narrative  the  third 
year  of  their  stay  is  entirely  omitted. 

In  addition  to  the  above  it  should  be  remarked  that  the  follow- 
ing items  must  appear  to  be  conspicuous  in  the  narratives  of 
Karlsefne's  expedition :  a.  There  is  that  same  indefiniteness  about 
the  coast  and  description  of  the  land  characteristic  of  all  the 
other  narratives,  and  which  might  apply  almost  as  well  to  one 
country  as  another.  It  is  an  exhibition  of  fictitious  land,  in- 
tended to  help  out  the  picture  which  the  reciter  finds  necessary 
to  create,  not  intended  to  be  located  or  regarded  as  veritable  his- 
tory, b.  The  number  of  men  engaged  in  the  expedition  in  one 
account  is  given  at  one  hundred  and  forty,  and  in  the  third  it  is 
reduced  to  sixty.  So  the  ships  fall  off  from  three  to  one.  c.  The 
time  of  sailing  in  the  first  narrative — not  regarding  the  modern 
punctuation — is  given  at  one  day  and  a  night  to  Helluland,  the 
same  to  Markland;  but  the  time  to  Wonderstrand  is  that  "they 


28  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

sailed  long  south  by  the  land."  In  the  second  account  the  whole 
time  occupied  in  sailing  is  but  three  days.  The  last  version  does 
not  give  the  time,  showing  that  the  distance  must  have  been 
considered  to  be  insignificant,  d.  The  first  account  declares  that 
Thorwald  Erikson  was  slain  by  an  arrow  shot  by  a  Uniped.  The 
same  Codex  Flatoyensis  declares  that  Thorwald  was  killed  by  a 
Skraelling  in  a  previous  expedition.  As  both  accounts  give  bat- 
tles with  the  Skraellings,  it  is  probable  these  stories  were  gradu- 
ally evolved  out  and  developed  from  the  same  source,  e.  The 
story  of  the  Uniped,  and  the  yellow-haired  woman  visiting  Gud- 
rid,  belong  to  the  mythological  and  miraculous,  f.  The  account 
of  the  five  Skraellings  in  Markland  is  very  doubtful.  The  boys 
were  seized  and  taken  to  Greenland,  but  the  bearded  man  and 
two  women  sank  into  the  earth  and  disappeared.  The  names  of 
the  boys'  father  and  mother — Vathelldi,  or  Vethilde,  and  Uvsege 
—  are  decidedly  Northern,  while  the  kings'  names — Avalldania 
and  Valldidia,  or  Valdidida — are  fragments  of  Northern  names 
thrown  together  to  constitute  fictitious  ones.  Why  these  Skrael- 
lings should  have  white  neighbors,  who  'carried  banners  on 
sticks,  must  be  left  solely  to  the  creative  fancy  of  the  reciter. 
That  it  was  borrowed  from  the  European  nations  no  one  would 
desire  to  question.  The  names  of  the  Scots — Hakiand  Hekia — 
are  by  no  means  Gaelic,  but  are  decidedly  Scandinavian,  g.  The 
story  makes  the  eider-duck  lay  eggs  where,  during  the  same 
week,  the  grapes  ripen  and  intoxicate  when  fresh,  and  the  wheat 
forms  in  the  ear ;  an  incongruity  which  could  only  happen  among 
a  people  not  familiar  with  the  things  treated,  h.  The  story  of 
the  punishing  of  Thorhall  the  hunter  for  his  impiety,  and  the 
rewarding  of  Karlsefne  for  throwing  away  the  meat  of  the  whale 
brought  thither  by  the  god  Thor,  indicates  that  the  first  legend 
had  passed  through  monkish  hands.  It  is  exceedingly  crude, 
and  perhaps  told  to  show  the  inferiority  of  the  Norse  god.  i.  The 
ship  driven  into  Dublin,  Ireland,  with  no  account  of  the  sail, 
proves  that  the  story  of  Vinland  is  laid  at  no  great  distance 
from  Ireland.  But  why  they  were  driven  upon  the  east  instead 
of  the  west  coast  must  remain  an  inexplicable  mystery. 

The  next  voyage  in  the  series  relied  on  to  establish  the  Norse 
theory  is  the  so-called  narrative  of  Freydis,  Helge  and  Finboge. 
It  starts  out  by  declaring  "the  conversation  began  again  to  turn 
upon  a  Vinland  voyage,  as  the  expedition  was  both  gainful  and 
honorable."  In  the  summer  of  1010  two  brothers,  Helge  and 
Finboge  arrived  in  Greenland  from  Norway.  Freydis,  she  who 
had  so  successfully  frightened  the  Skraellings  in  Vinland,  pro- 
posed to  these  brothers  that  they  should  make  a  voyage  to  Vin- 
land, and  offered  to  go  with  them  on  condition  that  an  equal 
share  should  be  allowed  her;  which  was  agreed  to.  It  was 
further  agreed  that  each  should  have  thirty  fighting  men,  besides 
women.  Freydis  secretly  brought  away  five  more  than  the  al- 


THE  SAGAS  AND  AMERICA.  29 

lotted  number.  Having  spent  the  winter  in  Vinland,  Freydis 
prevailed  upon  her  husband  to  slay  Helge  and  Finboge,  with  all 
their  men  ;  the  women  with  them  she  killed  with  her  own  hand. 
She  returned  to  Greenland  in  the  ship  owned  by  the  two  brothers 
with  all  the  goods  the  vessel  could  carry. 

This  story  says  nothing  of  the  voyage  from  Greenland  to 
Vinland,  nor  any  account  of  the  country ;  but  apparently  had 
no  difficulty  in  finding  the  houses  erected  by  Leif  Erikson.  They 
left  Vinland  in  the  spring,  but  what  time  is  not  stated,  although 
the  ship  was  made  ready  early  in  the  spring.  They  "had  a 
good  voyage  and  the  ship  came  early  in  the  summer  to  Eriks- 
fiord." 

Human  credulity,  in  many  cases,  can  not  be  overtaxed.  It 
has  been  gravely  put  forth*  that  in  the  year  1312  Bishop  Arne, 
of  Gardar,  preached  the  crusades,  not  only  in  Iceland  and  Green- 
land, but  also  in  America!  That  a  ship  arrived  from  Greenland 
in  1325,  bringing  "the  tithes  from  the  American  colonies,  con- 
sisting of  one  hundred  and  twenty-seven  pounds  of  walrus-teeth,, 
which  were  sold  to  Jean  du  Pre,  a  Flemish  merchant,  who  paid 
for  them  twelve  livres  and  fourteen  sous."  As  the  narrations  do 
not  record  any  permanent  settlements  in  Vinland,  just  what  par- 
ticular object  the  worthy  bishop  hoped  to  obtain,  it  would  be 
difficult  to  conjecture.  The  donation  of  two  dollars  and  thirty- 
five  cents'  worth  of  walrus-teeth,  and  that  given  after  a  delay 
of  thirteen  years,  would  appear  to  be  an  ironical  appreciation  of 
the  energies  of  the  bishop.  As  the  habitat  of  the  walrus  is  con- 
fined to  the  northern  circumpolar  regions  of  the  globe,  and  as 
the  contribution  consisted  in  the  remains  of  this  animal,  it  would 
be  but  fair  to  conclude  that  it  was  the  principal  product,  and 
hence  Vinland  must  be  sought  in  the  far  north.' 

Having  presented  the  special  character  of  the  sagas,  and  given 
something  of  a  detailed  account,  in  the  next  place  the  general 
features  must  attract  our  attention. 

As  has  already  been  observed,  the  evidence  of  the  reputed 
Norse  discovery  of  America  rests  solely  on  the  statement  of  the 
Codex  Flatoyensis.  A  discovery  so  great  would  have  found  its 
way  into  the  other  sagas,  and  yet  they  are  silent  on  the  subject. 
In  the  Heimskringla.Snorri  Sturlasson  is  made  to  say,  "Leif  also 
found  Vinland  the  good."  If  Leif  had  made  a  discovery  of  a 
continent  like  that  of  America  it  is  not  probable  that  Snorri 
would  have  dismissed  the  subject  in  so  abrupt  a  manner.  He 
would  have  seized  upon  it,  and  magnified  the  achievement,  and 
graced  it  with  the  power  of  his  pen,  as  has  been  exhibited  in  his 
Edda.  We  would  have  been  treated  to  other  Thucydidean 
speeches,  similar  to  those  that  mark  his  productions. 

As  a  constant  communication  was  kept  up  between  Iceland 

*John  B.  Shipley's  "English  Rediscovery  of  America,"  p.  6. 


30  PRE  COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

and  Ireland,  it  would  be  but  reasonable  to  infer  that  the  national 
records  of  the  Irish  would  contain  some  account  of  the  import- 
ant discovery.  The  Irish  annals  have  been  relied  on  so  much 
to  solve  historical  problems,  and  have  been  of  untold  advantage, 
yet  they  are  entirely  silent  upon  this  subject ;  although  the  Irish 
character  entered  into  the  very  life  of  the. western  sagamen. 

Saxo-Grammaticus,  the  most  celebrated  of  early  Danish  chron- 
iclers, who,  according  to  his  own  statement,  derived  his  knowl- 
edge of  the  remoter  period  of  Danish  history  from  old  songs, 
runic  inscriptions  and  the  historical  narratives  and  traditions  of 
the  Icelanders,  makes  no  mention  of  this  story,  although  he  lived 
as  late  as  the  year  1 204. 

Although  the  Codex  Flatoyensis  gives  a  graphic  and  terrible 
picture  of  shipwrecked  colonists  in  Greenland,  yet  is  utterly 
silent  on  what  must  have  been  the  sufferings  of  Biarne  Grimolf- 
son  and  his  companions  when  driven  from  the  coast  of  America 
to  Dublin.  And  yet  that  stormy  passage  of  nearly  three  thousand 
miles  was  made  as  though  it  was  but  a  pleasant  day's  sail. 

The  ease  with  which  the  houses  of  Leif  in  Vinland  were  found 
on  each  succeeding  voyage  must  be  a  matter  of  surprise  to  every 
one  who  has  read  the  narratives.  The  ships  seem  to  have  been 
attracted  to  the  spot  as  readily  as  the  needle  points  to  the  pole. 

Why  so  much  space  in  the  sagas  should  be  taken  up  with  end- 
less genealogies,  and  the  discovery  of  a  vast  continent  passed 
over  without  description — vague,  it  is  true,  is  given,  uncertain, 
indefinite — as  to  surface,  coast  line,  climate,  or  the  wonders  in 
the  wilderness,  must  serve  to  dumbfound  even  its  most  voluble 
advocates.  The  animal  life  that  existed  in  the  forests  of  Massa- 
chusetts, Maine  and  Connecticut  did  not  call  forth  any  notice. 
True,  they  saw  a  bear,  but  its  color  or  size  elicited  no  attention, 
though  they  must  have  seen  the  polar  and  the  Norwegian  bears. 
Can  it  be  possible  that  they  were  so  dumb  to  nature  as  to  allow 
its  wonders  to  escape  their  attention?  Minute  the  sagas  are  in 
minor  things,  is  it  possible  the  greater  things  caused  them  not 
to  wonder? 

If  they  landed  in  Massachusetts,  or  on  any  part  of  the  eastern 
coast,  the  advantage  of  the  situation  over  that  of  Greenland  or 
Iceland  must  have  been  so  patent  as  to  cause  a  wave  of  immi- 
gration to  have  set  in  as  would  have  depopulated  Greenland, 
materially  have  affected  Iceland,  and  even  felt  in  Norway. 

Norway  abandoned  the  Greenland  settlement,  but  did  not  for- 
get there  was  such  a  place.  Vinland  was  forgotten  and  the  Norse* 
discovery  was  not  resurrected  until  1570,  when  Ortelius,  cos- 
mographer  to  Philip  II.  of  Spain,  resurrected  it.  If  the  Norse 
discovered  America,  and  made  one  or  more  voyages  to  it,  and 
then  forgot  that  discovery,  or  hid  the  report,  then  it  must  be  to 
them  a  shame  which  time  will  fail  to  eradicate.  To  claim  that 
the  Norsemen  discovered  America  is  an  impeachment  of  their 


THE  SAGAS  AND  AMERICA.  31 

intelligence.  That  there  was  a  Leif  Erikson,  and  that  he  was  the 
son  of  Erik  the  Red,  and  made  his  home  in  Greenland,  perhaps 
no  one  would  desire  to  deny ;  that  he  came  uptm  a  land  which 
he  gave  various  names  to,  is  not  only  possible  but  also  probable. 
That  the  land  he  discovered  was  not  so  well  situated  or  attractive 
as  the  home  of  Erik  is  proved  from  the  fact  that  he  abandoned 
his  houses  in  Vinland  and  returned  to  his  former  home.  All 
the  facts  in  the  case,  would  point  to  Western  Greenland  as  the 
scene  of  the  achievement  of  Leif  Erikson.  The  Skraellings 
were  Eskimos,  as  may  be  learned  from  the  descriptions  given: 
"These  people  were  swarthy  and  fierce,  and  had  bushy  hair  on 
their  heads;  they  had  very  large  eyes  and  broad  cheeks."  In 
1342  the  Eskimo  so  imperilled  the  western  colonies  ot  Greenland 
that  they  were  abandoned.  These  settlements  could  not  have 
been  strong,  and  probably  were  made  after  the  death  of  Leif. 

How  much  dependence  can  be  placed  in  certain  statements 
must  be  left  to  conjecture.  No  reliance  can  be  placed  in  the 
points  of  the  compass,  for  with  that  instrument  they  had  no  ac- 
quaintance. /It  must  be  regarded  as  comparative,  when  the  direc- 
tion of  the  sfnp's  sailing  is  given.  In  Leif's  voyage  the  shortest 
day  in  Vinland  was  from  "  dagmaal  til  non,"  that  is,  from  nine 
to  three. 

In  the  legends  of  Greenland  and  Iceland  sufficient  data  had 
been  preserved  upon  which  such  a  narrative  could  be  built  as 
would  tickle  the  ear  of  those  whose  ancestors  were  lauded.  As 
has  been  seen,  these  narratives  are  crude  and  poorly  constructed, 
but  clearly  represent  the  beginning  of  fiction,  which  might  have 
been  better  adorned  had  they  fallen  into  more  competent  hands. 
The  mighty  ocean  stretching  out  itself  beyond  the  Pillars  of 
Hercules,  Ireland  and  the  Western  Isles,  afforded  food  for  the 
imaginations  of  men.  The  influence  was  felt  by  the  sagamen, 
who  pictured  a  body  of  land  west' of  Ireland  and  within  easy 
sail.  Tales  grew  out  of  this  pictured  land,  which  have  been  pre- 
served in  their  writings.  One  of  these  is  the  story  of  Gudleif 
Gudlaugson,  preserved  in  the  Eyrbyggia  saga.  Near  the  end  of 
the  reign  oi  King  Olaf,  Gudleif  went  on  a  trading  voyage  to  the 
west  of  Dublin.  On  his  return  to  Iceland,  sailing  west  from 
Ireland,  he  was  driven  far  into  the  ccean  by  northeast  winds.  At 
length  they  saw  land  of  great  extent,  and  finding  a  good  harbor 
they  went  on  shore,  where  a  number  of  men  met  them,  and  from 
their  language  took  them  to  be  Irish.  Soon  after  many  hun- 
dreds surrounded  them,  who  seized  Gudleif  and  his  companions, 
bound  and  drove  them  inland,  where  they  were  brought  before 
an  assembly  which  decided  what  should  be  done  with  them. 
There  was  a  division  in  the  council;  some  were  for  killing  them, 
and  others  were  for  reducing  them  to  slavery.  "While  this  was 
going  on,  they  saw  a  great  number  of  men  riding  towards  them 
with  a  banner  lifted  up,  whence  they  inferred  that  some  great 


32  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

man  was  among  them.  When  the  company  drew  near,  they  saw 
a  man  riding  under  the  banner."  To  this  man  their  case  was 
referred.  He  commanded  them  to  be  brought  to  him,  and  ad- 
dressed them  in  the  Norse  tongue.  When  he  discovered  they 
were  Icelanders,  he  declared  he  was  from  Bogafiord,  and  made 
many  inquiries  concerning  certain  people.  He  refused  to  dis- 
close his  name,  and,  although  the  summer  was  nearly  gone,  he 
advised  them  to  leave,  and  looked  to  the  fitting  out  of  their  ship. 
Gudleif,  with  his  companions,  put  to  sea,  and  the  same  autumn 
reached  Ireland,  and  passed  the  winter  in  Dublin. 

According  to  the  Landnamabok,  Are  Marson,  about  928,  was 
driven  by  a  storm  to  White-man's  land,  which  some  call  Ireland 
the  Great,  which  lies  in  the  western  ocean,  opposite  Vinland,  six 
days'  sail  west  of  Ireland.  Here  he  was  baptized,  not  allowed 
to  leave,  and  was  held  in  great  honor. 

In  presenting  these  tales  the  reciters  do  not  get  rid  of  their 
conceptions  of  European  customs.  In  the  fabulous  land,  men 
continue  to  ride  on  horseback  and  follow  banners.  Even  the 
Christian  religion  early  reaches  out  its  arm  there;  but  what  saint 
propogated  the  new  doctrine  deponeth  saith  not. 

The  idea  of  superstition  must  not  be  lost  sight  of  in  this  dis- 
cussion. It  had  a  bearing  on  these  narratives,  as  has  already 
been  intimated.  In  saga  time  it  is  impossible  to  draw  a  line  be- 
tween superstition  and  religion.  Their  superstitions  were  rude 
in  shape  and  vigorous  in  imagery.  The  composers  of  the  sagas, 
although  supposed  to  be  Christians,  were  swayed  by  the  super- 
stitions of  their  age.  As  an  illustration  of  this  fact,  the  follow- 
ing may  be  given  from  the  saga  of  Thorfinn  Karlsefne:  There 
was  a  witch  named  Thorborg,  who  was  called  upon  during  a  time 
of  evil  in  Greenland.  She  was  accorded  the  seat  of  honor,  wore 
a  blue  cloak,  laced  in  front  and  covered  with  precious  stones. 
On  her  head  was  a  black  lambskin,  trimmed  with  white  cat's  fur, 
while  in  her  hand  was  a  staff,  the  top  of  which  was  brass  inlaid 
with  precious  stones.  Around  her  waist  was  a  belt,  from  which 
hung  a  bag  containing  materials  for  fire,  and  the  articles  used  in 
sorcery.  After  making  the  witches'  broth,  some  other  woman 
must  sing  the  witches'  chant.  The  women  of  the  house  were 
placed  around  the  caldron,  and  Gudrid  sang  so  sweetly  that  the 
spirits  revealed  that  as  the  winter  passed  away  so  would  the  bad 
times  and  the  pestilence  should  decline.  These  superstitions 
gave  a  coloring  to  what  was  written ;  and  the  sagas  bearing  on 
the  Norse  discovery  should  be  read  in  their  entirety,  and  not 
solely  that  part  relating  directly  on  the  subject. 


NORSE  REMAINS  IN  AMERICA.  33 


CHAPTER  IV. 


NORSE  REMAINS  IN  AMERICA. 

The  records  concerning  the  Icelandic  colony  in  Greenland 
are  meager,  uncertain  and  fragmentary.  What  finally  became 
of  the  colony  is  unknown.  Communication  ceased  with  Green- 
land some  time  during  the  fifteenth  century.  However,  it  was 
not  wholly  forgotten.  Many  expeditions  set  out  to  undertake 
its  rediscovery,  which  was  not  effected  until  1721,  when  Hans 
Egede  succeeded  in  re-opening  communication;  but  he  found  no 
descendants  of  the  Norsemen  there. 

Ancient  ruins  in  Greenland  do  not  appear  to  be  either  numer- 
ous or  extensive.  It  is  probable  the  colony  never  was  a  large 
one.  Near  Igaliko,  which  is  situated  on  an  isthmus  formed  by 
two  fjords,  there  can  be  traced  the  walls  of  about  seventeen 
dwellings,  and  opposite  the  Moravian  settlement  ot  Frederiksdal 
there  have  been  found  tombs  containing  wooden  coffins,  with 
skeletons  wrapped  in  hairy  cloth,  and  both  pagan  and  Christian 
tomb-stones,  with  runic  inscriptions. 

With  these  evidences  before  them  the  Copenhagen  antiquar- 
ians felt  assured  that  remains  of  the  Norsemen  could  also  be 
found  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  United  States,  and  in  order  to 
establish  their  conclusions  they  sent  out  letters  of  inquiry  to 
societies  and  individuals  for  information.  Thus  having  been  put 
on  the  trail  the  evidence  was  forthcoming.  The  Historical 
Society  of  Rhode  Island  was  quick  to  respond,  and  procured 
such  data  as  must  have  not  only  delighted  but  astonished  the 
Copenhagen  sages  The  Dighton  Rock  Inscription,  the  Old 
Stone  Mill  at  Newport  and  the  Skeleton  in  Armor  constitute 
the  array  of  evidence.  That  these  purported  evidences  had 
much  to  do  with  giving  the  exact  location  of  the  so-called  Norse 
settlements  there  can  be  no  question.  The  Icelandic  manu- 
scripts at  once  pointed  to  the  exact  spot  where  the  Dighton 
Rock  is  placed.  The  inscription  on  the  rock  was  carefully 
studied  by  the  Danish  antiquarians,  from  the  lines  and  figures 
carefully  drawn  by  the  authority  of  the  Rhode  Island  Society. 
The  result  of  the  labors  of  the  Royal  Society  of  Antiquaries  of 
Copenhagen  was  published  in  1837,  in  a  book  entitled  "Anti- 
quitates  Americanas,"  to  which  a  supplement  was  added  in 
1841.  This  work,  with  the  American  array  of  purported  facts, 
gave  zest  to  the  subject  of  the  Norse  discovery.  With  confi- 
dence the  route  of  the  Norsemen  along  the  shore  of  New  Eng- 


34  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 


land  and  the  positions  they  occupied  were  pointed  out.  So 
great  was  the  elation  of  feeling  that  it  could  scarcely  be  confined 
within  reasonable  limits,  and  soon,  under  this  inspiration,  the 
Scandinavians  penetrated  into  the  southern  portions  of  the 
United  States.  How  much  farther  they  would  have  gone  it  is 
impossible  to  say  had  not  the  tide  been  checked  by  a  more 
sober  and  rational  view  of  the  American  monuments. 

With  all  the  light  that  has  been  thrown  upon  the  Dighton 
Rock,  it  would  be  reasonable  to  suppose  that  no  one  would  de- 
sire to  bring  it  forth  as  proof  of  the  Norse  expeditions.  Certain 
subjects,  similar  to  certain  men,  die  hard.  One  man — Professor 
R.  B.  Anderson — thus  announces  his  undying  faith:  "Until 
sufficient  proof  of  some  other  origin  of  the  Newport  Tower 
and  the  Dighton  Rock  inscription  are  given,  we  shall  persist  in 
claiming  them  as  relics  of  the  Norsemen."*  In  his  chapter  on 
Thorfinn  Karlsefne  he  is  moved  to  say:  "In  the  next  place,  at- 
tention is  invited  to  an  inscription  on  a  rock,  situated  on  the 
right  bank  of  the  Taunton  River,  in  Bristol  County,  Mass.  It  is 
familiarly  called  the  Dighton  Writing  Rock  Inscription.  It  stands 
in  the  very  region  which  the  Norsemen  frequented.  It  is  written 
in  characters  which  the  natives  have  never  used  nor  sculptured. 
This  inscription  was  copied  by  Dr.  Danforth  as  early  as  1680, 
by  Cotton  Mather  in  1712;  it  was  copied  by  Dr.  Greenwood  in 
1730,  by  Stephen  Se  well  'in  1768,  by  James  Winthrop  in  1788, 
and  has  been  copied  at  least  four  times  in  the  present  century. 
The  rock  was  seen  and  talked  of  by  the  first  settlers  in  New 
England  long  before  anything  was  said  about  the  Norsemen 
discovering  America  before  Columbus.  Near  the  center  of  the 
inscription  we  read  distinctly,  in  Roman  characters,  CXXXI, 
which  is  151,  the  exact  number  of  Thorfinn's  party.  Then  we 
find  an  N,  a  boat,  and  the  Runic  character  for  M,  which  may 
be  interpreted,  'N(orse)  sea-faring  M(en).'  Besides  we  have  the 
word  NAM — took  (took  possession),  and  the  whole  of  Thor- 
finn's name,  with  the  exception  of  the  first  letter.  Repeating 
these  characters  we  have,  ORFIN,  CXXXI,  N  (picture  of  a 
boat),  M,  NAM,  which  has  been  interpreted  by  Prof.  Rafn  as 
follows:  'Thorfinn,  with  one  hundred  and  fifty-one  Norse  sea- 
faring men,  took  possession  of  this  land  (landnam).'  In  the 
lower  left  corner  of  the  inscription  is  a  figure  of  a  woman  and 
a  child,  near  the  latter  of  which  is  the  letter  S,  reminding  us 
most  forcibly  of  Gudrid  and  her  son,  Snorre.  Upon  the  whole, 
the  Dighton  Writing  Rock,  if  Prof.  Rafn's  plates  and  interpre- 
tations can  be  relied  upon,  removes  all  doubt  concerning  the 
presence  of  Thorfinn,  Karlsefne  and  the  Norsemen  at  Taunton 
River,  in  the  beginning  of  the  eleventh  century."  f 

Prof.  Anderson  appears  to  be  utterly  oblivious  to  the  fact 
that  investigations  have  been  made  concerning  this  rock,  since 

*Amerlca  Not  Discovered  by  Columbus,  p.  22. 
t  America  Not  Discovered  by  Columbus,  pp.  82, 83. 


36  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

Prof.  Rafn's  opinions  were  published.  It  is  but  charitable  to 
assume  that  Prof.  Anderson  never  heard  ot  the  results  of  this 
inquiry,  although  they  have  repeatedly  been  published.  It  will 
be  noticed  that  Prof.  Anderson  indirectly  admits  that  if  the 
Dighton  Rock  does  not  confirm  the  Norse  discoveries,  then 
there  is  doubt  concerning  the  presence  of  Norsemen  at  Taun- 
ton  river. 

The  more  judicious  and  better  informed  De  Costa,  in  his 
chapterless  volume,  entitled  Pre-Columbian  Discoveries  of 
America,  although,  apparently  he  has  exhausted  the  evidences 
bearing  on  his  theme,  devotes  but  little  space  in  the  body  of  his 
work  to  the  American  monument,  but  his  references,  where 
made,  are  mostly  in  the  form  of  foot  notes.  In  one  ot  these 
notes,  concerning  Dighton  Rock,  he  affirms  that  "whoever 
compares  this  inscription  with  those  of  undeniably  Indian  origin 
found  elsewhere,  cannot  fail  to  be  impressed  with  the  similarity. 
*  *  Just  over  these  letters  is  a  character,  supposed  to  be  Roman 
also,  which  may  signify  NA,  or  MA,  the  letter  A  being  formed 
by  the  last  branch  of  M.  Now  MA  in  Icelandic  is  used  as  an 
abbreviation  of  Madr^  which  signifies  the  original  settler  of  a 
country."  f 

By  competent  observers  the  Dighton  Rock  has  been  de- 
scribed as  a  large  angular  block  of  greenstone  trap,  presenting 
a  smooth  inclined  line  of  structure,  or  natural  face  towards  the 
channel.  It  lies  on  a  large  flat  in  the  bend  of  the  river,  and  is 
exposed  or  laid  bare  at  ebb-tide,  but  covered  with  several  feet  of 
water  at  the  flow,  submerging  the  rock,  with  its  inscription. 
The  action  of  the  tide,  thus  diurnally  assailing  the  inscription, 
which  has  continued  for  a  great  length  of  years,  has  tended 
to  obliterate  the  traces  of  all  pigments  and  stains,  which  the 
aborigines  are  known  to  have  employed  to  eke  out  their  rock- 
writings  or  drawings.  The  effect  of  disintegration  from  atmos- 
pheric causes  have  been  probably  less,  under  this  action  of  the 
water,  than  is  usual  in  dry  situations.  But  as  the  tide  deposits 
upon  its  surface  a  light  marine  scum,  which  necessarily  renders 
any  scientific  examination  of  the  inscription  unsatisfactory  with- 
out a  thorough  removal  of  all  recremental  or  deposited  matter. 

Washington,  who  was  well  versed  in  Indian  matters,  on  being 
shown  a  delineation  of  the  rock,  pronounced  the  drawings 
aboriginal.  In  1839,  Mr.  Schoolcraft  employed  Ching  Wauk, 
an  intelligent  Algonkin  chief,  well  versed  in  Indian  pictography, 
to  descipher  the  inscription  from  the  engravings  of  the  rock 
that  appeared  in  "Antiquities  Americanos,"  one  of  which  was 
made  in  1790,  and  the  other  in  1830.  Selecting  the  former  he 
pronounced  it  Indian,  that  it  related  to  two  nations,  and  con- 
sisted of  two  parts.  All  the  figures  to  the  left  of  a  line  drawn 
through  it  which  would  not  touch  any  part  of  the  figures  related 

tPre-Columblan  Discovery ;  p.  66. 


NORSE  REMAINS  IN  AMERICA.  37 

to  the  acts  and  exploits  of  the  chief,  represented  by  the  key- 
figure,  No  i,  and  all  the  devices  to  the  right  of  it  had  reference 
to  his  enemies  and  their  acts.  There  was  nothing  depicted  in 
eithtr  of  the  figures  to  denote  a  foreigner.  There  was  no  figure 
of,  or  sign  for,  a  gun,  sword,  axe,  or  other  implement,  such  as 
were  brought  by  white  men  beyond  the  sea. 

One  engraving,  taken  from  Schoolcraft's  "Indian  Tribes," 
"presents  unity  of  original  drawing  corresponding  to  the  Indian 
system,  which  cannot  fail  to  strike  the  observer.  It  is  entirely 
Indian,  and  is  executed  in  the  symbolic  character  which  the  Al- 
gonkins  call  Kekeewin,  *.  e.,  teachings.  The  fancied  resem- 
blances to  old  forms  of  the  Roman  letters  or  figures,  which 
appear  on  the  Copenhagen  copies,  wholly  disappear.  The  only 
apparent  exception  to  this  remark  is  the  upright  rhomboidal 
figure  resembling  some  forms  of  the  ancient  ^  ,  but  which  ap- 
pears to  be  an  accidental  resemblance.  No  trace  appears,  or 
could  be  found  by  the  several  searches  of  the  assumed  Runic 
letter  Thor,  which  holds  a  place  on  former  copies.  Rock  in- 
scriptions of  a  similar  character  have  within  a  few  years  been 
found  in  other  parts  of  the  country,  which  denote  the  prevalence 
of  this  system  among  the  aboriginal  tribes  from  the  Atlantic  to 
the  Mississippi.  It  is  more  particularly  an  Algonkin  trait,  and 
tne  inscriptions  are  called  by  them  Muzzinabiks,  or  rock-teach- 
ing, while  the  elements  of  the  system  itself  are  called,  as  above 
stated,  Kekeewin  and  Kekeenowin." 

The  great  dissimilarity  in  the  different  delineations  of  the 
forms  of  the  marks  on  the  Dighton  stone,  in  which  no  two 
would  appear  to  be  intended  for  the  same  design,  must  neces- 
sarily shake  confidence  in  the  possibility  of  assigning  it  to  a 
oositive  significance  in  linguistics.  In  speaking  of  this  rock, 
Dr.  Wilson  says  :  "At  the  meeting  of  the  American  Associa- 
tion for  the  Advancement  of  Science,  at  Albany,  in  1856,  I  had 
an  opportunity  of  inspecting  a  cast  of  the  Rock.  No  more  con- 
fused and  indistinct  scrawl  ever  tried  the  eyes  of  antiquarian 
seer.  Mine  proved  wholly  unable  to  discern  the  invaluable 
holograph  of  the  ancient  Norse  Columbus.  Indeed,  the  indis- 
tinctness of  the  half-obliterated  design,  and  the  rough  natural 
surface  of  the  weathered  rock  on  which  the  figures  have  been 
scratched  with  the  imperfect  tools  of  some  Indian  artist,  abun- 
dantly account  for  the  variations  in  successive  copies,  as  well  as 
for  the  fanciful  additions  which  enthusiastic  copyists  have  made 
out  of  its  obscure  lines."  f 

The  question  of  the  Runic  letters  found  on  the  rock  should 
not  be  passed  lightly  over.  Prof.  Rafn  attempted  to  show  that 
there  were  positively  two  or  three  of  these  characters  on  it. 
In  the  quotation  from  Schoolcraft,  above  given,  it  will  be  noticed 
that  he  expressly  declares  that  "no  trace  appears,  or  could  be 

*See  Schoolcraft's  Dissertation  In  his  "Indian  Tribes,"  Vol.  IV,  p.  120. 
t  Prehistoric  Man;  p.  406. 


89564 


38  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

found  by  the  several  searches,  of  the  assumed  Runic  letter 
Thor,  which  holds  a  place  on  former  copies."  Now,  whether 
or  not  Prof.  Rafn  found  what  he  specially  was  in  search  of,  or 
else  some  one  purposely  deceived  him  by  injecting  Runic  char- 
acters into  the  copy,  cannot  be  determined  at  this  late  date. 
Bitter  experience  has  taught  the  antiquarian  to  weigh  Runic 
well  before  arriving  at  a  decision.  As  an  illustration,  the  case 
of  Prof.  Finn  Magnusen  may  be  cited  with  profit.  In  the  Swe- 
dish province  of  Bleking  is  a  rock  (called  "Runamo")  wiih  a 
so-called  Runic  inscription  relating  to  the  battle  between  king 
Harold  Hildetand,  of  Denmark,  and  the  Swedish  king  Sigurd 
Ring,  fought  about  the  year  700  of  our  era.  Under  the  auspices 
of  the  Royal  Danish  Academy  of  Science,  in  the  year  1833,  a 
committee  of  scientists  were  sent  to  visit  the  rock,  and  carefully 
investigate,  and  make  a  complete  report  in  regard  to  it.  Prof. 
Finn  Magnusen,  a  member  of  the  committee,  in  1841,  published 
an  illustrated  quarto  work  of  742  pages  relating  to  the  inscrip- 
tion, under  the  title  Runamo  og  Runerne.  The  following  is  the 
rendering  of  the  inscription  : 

"  Hildekind  occupied  the  empire 

Gard  cut  in  (the  runes) 

Ole  gave  "ath  (oath  of  allegiance) 

(May)  Odin  hallow  the  runes 

(May)  Ring  fall 

On  this  earth 

Alfs,  love  gods 

(Hate)  Ole 

Odin  and  Freja 

And  Aser's  descendants 

(May)  Destroy  our  enemies 

Grant  Harold 

A  great  victory." 

In  1842  and  1844,  the  eminent  Danish  archaeologist,  J.  J.  A. 
Worses,  visited  the  Runamo  Rock,  and  after  having  carefully 
examinee  it,  came  to  the  following  conclusion  :  "There  is  no 
Runic  inscription  whatever  on  Runamo  Rock,  and  that  the 
marks  considered  as  runes  by  Finn  Magnusen  are  simply  the 
natural  cracks  on  the  decayed  surface  of  a  trap  dyke  filling  up 
a  rent  in  a  granitic  formation."  It  is  probable  that  there  are 
some  still  living  who  will  continue  to  believe  that  these  natural 
markings  are  runes. 

The  discussion  of  the  Dighton  Rock  cannot  be  more  fitly 
closed  than  in  the  interesting  summary  made  by  Dr.  Wilson  : 

"The  history  of  this  inscription  is  scarcely  surpassed,  in  the 
interest  it  has  excited  or  the  novel  phases  it  has  exhibited  at 
successive  epochs  ot  theoretical  speculation,  by  any  Perusinian, 
Eugubine,  or  Nilotic  riddle.  When  the  taste  of  American 
antiquaries  inclined  towards  Phoenician  relics,  the  Dighton  in- 
scription conformed  to  their  opinions  ;  and  with  changing 
tastes  it  has  proved  equally  compliant.  In  1783,  the  Rev.  Ezra 
Stiles,  D.  D.,  President  of  Yale  College,  when  preaching  before 


NORSE  REMAINS  IN  AMERICA.  39 

the  governor  of  the  state  of  Connecticut,  appealed  to  the  Digh- 
ton  Rock,  graven,  as  he  believed,  in  the  old  Punic  or  Phoenician 
character  and  language;  in  proof  that  the  Indians  were  of  the 
accursed  seed  of  Canaan,  and  were  to  be  displaced  and  rooted 
out  by  the  European  descendants  of  Japhet.  'The  Phoenicians,' 
he  affirms,  'charged  the  Dighton  and  other  rocks  in  Narragan- 
set  Bay  with  Punic  inscriptions  remaining  to  this  day,  which 
last  I  myself  have  repeatedly  seen  and  taken  off  at  large,  as  did 
Prof.  Sewell.  He  has  lately  transmitted  a  copy  of  this  inscrip- 
tion to  Mr.  Gebelin,  of  the  Parisian  Academy  of  Sciences, 
who,  comparing  them  with  the  Punic  palaeography,  judges  them 
to  be  Punic,  and  has  interpreted  them  as  denoting  that  the 
ancient  Carthaginians  once  visited  these  distant  regions'  *  *  * 
Here,  then,  we  perceive  the  very  materials  we  stand  in  need  of. 
Change  but  this  Punic  into  a  Runic  inscription,  and  the  winds 
of  the  north  will  fit  the  Scandinavian  Icelanders  far  better  than 
voyagers  from  the  Mediterranean  Sea  *  *  *  So  early  as 
1680,  Dr.  Danforth  executed  what  he  characterized  as  a  'faith- 
ful and  accurate  representation  of  the  inscription'  on  Dighton 
Rock.  In  1712,  the  celebrated  Cotton  Mather  procured  draw- 
ings of  the  same,  and  transmitted  them  to  the  Secretary  of  the 
Royal  Society  of  London,  with  a  description,  printed  in  the 
Philosophical  Transactions  for  1714,  referring  to  it  as  'an  in- 
scription in  which  are  seven  or  eight  lines,  about  seven  or  eight 
feet  long,  and  about  a  foot  wide,  each  of  them  engraven  with 
unaccountable  characters,  not  like  any  known  character?  In  1730, 
Dr.  Isaac  Greenwood,  Hollisian  Professor  at  Cambridge,  New 
England,  communicated  to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Lon- 
don a  drawing  of  the  same  inscription,  accompanied  with  a 
description  which  proves  the  great  care  with  which  his  copy, 
was  executed.  In  1768,  Mr.  Stephen  Sewall,  Professor  of  Ori- 
ental Languages  at  Cambridge,  New  England,  took  a  careful 
copy,  the  size  of  the  original,  and  deposited  it  in  the  Museum  of 
Harvard  University;  and  a  transcript  of  this  was  forwarded  to 
the  Royal  Society  of  London,  six  years  later,  by  Mr.  James  Win- 
throp,  Hollisian  Professor  of  Mathematics.  In  1786,  the  Rev. 
Michael  Lort,  D.  D.,  one  of  the  vice-presidents  of  the  Society  of 
Antiquaries  of  London,  again  brought  the  subject,  with  all  its 
accumulated  illustrations,  before  that  society:  and  Col.  Vallency 
undertook  to  prove  that  the  inscription  was  neither  Phoenician 
nor  Punic,  but  Siberian.  Subsequently,  Judge  Winthrop  exe- 
cuted a  drawing  in  1788  ;  and  again  we  have  others  by  Judge 
Baylies  and  Mr.  Joseph  Gooding  in  1790,  by  Mr.  Kendall  in 
1807,  by  Mr.  Job  Gardner  in  1812,  and  finally,  in  1830,  by  a 
commission  appointed  by  the  Rhode  Island  Historical  Society, 
and  communicated  to  the  'Antiquaries  of  Copenhagen  with 
elaborate  descriptions:  which  duly  appear  in  their  Antiquitaties 
Americana,  in  proof  of  novel  and  very  remarkable  deductions. 
Surely  no  inscription,  ancient  or  modern,  not  even  the  Behistun 


40  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

cuneatics,  or  the  trilingual  Rosetta  Stone,  ever  received  more 
faithful  study.  After  inspecting  the  rude  scrawls  of  which  it 
chiefly  consists,  it  is  pleasant  to  feel  assured  of  this,  at  least  : 
that  when  learned  divines,  professors  and  linguists  thus  perse- 
veringly  questioned  this  New  England  sphinx  for  upwards  of  a 
century  and  a  half,  we  have  good  proof  that  no  more  valuable 
inscriptions  have  been  allowed  to  perish  unrecorded.  But  the 
most  curious  matter  relating  to  this  written  rock  is,  that  after 
being  thus  put  to  the  question  by  learned  inquisitors  for  a  hun- 
dred and  fifty  years,  it  did  at  length  yield  a  most  surprising 
response. 

The  description  given  by  Prof.  Greenwood  of  his  own  process 
of  copying,  and  by  Prof.  Winthrop  of  the  method  pursued  by 
his  colleague,  Mr.  Sewall — as  well  as  the  assiduity  and  zeal  of 
other  copyists — would,  under  all  ordinary  circumstances,  have 
seemed  to  render  any  further  reference  to  the  stone  itself  super- 
fluous. But  no  sooner  do  the  Danish  antiquaries  write  to  their 
Rhode  Island  correspondents,  with  a  hint  of  Leif  Erikson  and 
other  old  Norsemen's  New  England  explorations  than  the 
Dighton  Rock  grows  luminous;  and  the  Rhode  Island  Com- 
mission sends  -a  new  drawing  to  Copenhagen,  duly  engraved, 
with  all  the  others,  in  the  Antiquitates  Americana,  from  which 
the  learned  Danes,  Finn  Magnusen  and  Charles  C.  Rafn — as 
indeed  the  most  unlearned  of  English  or  American  readers 
may — discern  the  name  of  Thorfinn,  with  an  exact,  though  by 
no  means  equally  manifest  enumeration  of  the  associates  who, 
according  to  the  saga,  accompanied  Karlsefne's  expedition  to 
Vinland  in  A.  D.  1007.  The  annals  of  antiquarian  exploration 
record  many  marvellous  disclosures,  but  few  more  surprising 
than  this."* 

The  Dighton  Rock  inscription  having  been  so  well  received 
in  Copenhagen,  Dr.  Webb,  the  Secretary  of  the  Rhode  Island 
Society,  again  essayed  to  enlighten  the  Danes,  so  sent  them  a 
drawing  of  the  circular  stone  mill  at  Newport,  along  with  some 
metallic  implements  found  in  conjunction  with  a  skeleton  at  Fall 
River.  These  new  evidences  were  published  in  the  Supplement 
to  Anttquitates  Americana,  which  appeared  in  1841.  Much 
learning  was  employed  to  prove  by  analogies  that  these  also 
were  of  Norse  origin.  That  the  Round  Tower  at  Newport, 
Rhode  Island,  is  of  Scandinavian  origin  rests  on  no  other  foun- 
dation than  that  of  bold  assertion.  And  yet  the  idea  has  found 
its  way  into  our  school  books,  and  a  picture  of  it  is  given,  in 
attestation  of  the  early  visit  of  the  Icelanders.  This  structure, 
which  has  so  forcibly  been  pressed  into  service  to  do  duty  in 
substantiating  an  unhappy  theory,  stands  on  an  eminence  in  the 
center  of  the  town  of  Newport,  being  about  twenty-four  feet 
high  and  twenty-three  feet  in  diameter,  circular  in  form.  It 

•Prehistoric  Man,  pp.  408-406. 


NORSE  REMAINS  IN  AMERICA.  41 

rests  upon  eight  piers,  connected  by  arches  :  has  four  small 
windows,  and,  high  up  the  wall,  above  the  arches,  was  a  small 
fire-place.  The  columns  are  about  ten  feet  high;  the  height  of 
the  center  of  the  arches  from  the  ground  is  twelve  feet  six  inches, 
and  the  foundation  extends  to  the  depth  of  four  or  five  feet. 
The  stones  composing  the  structure  are  irregular  in  size  and  not 
placed  in  regular  layers. 

If  this  tower  was  standing  when  Rhode  Island  was  first  set- 
tled, it  would  have  been  a  work  ofso  great  wonder  as  to  have 
attracted  general  attention.  Newport  was  founded  in  1639, 


QLD   STONE    MILL 

in  none  of  the  early  documents  is  there  any  mention  of  the  Old 
Mill.  There  was  no  tradition  concerning  it  among  the  people, 
but  was  universally  referred  to  as  a  -wind-mill,  showing  for  what 
purpose  it  had  been  used,  and  is  positively  known  to  have  served 
during  the  eighteenth  century,  both  as  a  mill  and  powder-house. 
It  is  first  distinctly  mentioned  in  the  will  of  governor  Benedict 
Arnold,  of  Newport,  where  it  is  called  "my  stone-built  wind- 
mill." Had  it  been  an  ancient  monument,  Dr.  Danforth,  in  1680, 
or  Cotton  Mather,  in  1712,  would  not  have  failed  to  mention  it. 

The  first  house  in  Newport  was  built  by  Nicholas  Easton,  but 
he  makes  no  mention  of  the  Old  Stone  Mill.  In  1663,  Peter 
Easton  wrote,  "this  year  we  built  the  first  wind-mill,"  and  in 
1675,  he  again  wrote,  "a  storm  blew  down  our  wind-mill." 

Benedict  Arnold  must  have  been  a  very  popular  man  in  Rhode 
Island,  for  he  was  several  times  governor,  the  last  time  from 
1677  to  1678.  He  came  from  Providence  to  Newport  in  1653. 
He  built  a  house  upon  a  lot  of  sixteen  acres,  the  eastern  part  of 


42  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

which  includes  the  mill.  Gov.  Arnold  died  in  1678,  aged  sixty- 
three  years.  His  will  is  dated  December  20,  1677,  in  which  he 
enjoins.:  "My  body  I  desire  and  appoint  to  be  buried  at  ye 
northeast  corner  of  a  parcel  of  ground  containing  three  rods 
square,  being  of,  and  lying  in,  my  land,  in  or  near  the  line  or 
path  trom  my  dwelling  house,  leading  to  my  stone-built  wind- 
mill, in  ye  town  of  Newport  above  mentioned."  Edward 
Pelham,  son-in-law  of  above,  in  his  will  dated  May  21,  1741,  in 
his  bequest  to  his  daughter,  Hermseoine,  says:  "Also  one  other 
piece  or  parcel  of  land  situated,  lying  and  being  in  Newport 
aforesaid,  containing  eight  acres  or  thereabouts,  with  an  old 
stone  wind-mill  thereon  standing,  and  being  and  commonly 
called  and  known  by  the  name  of  the  mill  field,  or  upper  field." 
In  1834,  Joseph  Mumford,  then  being  eighty  years  old,  stated 
that  his  lather  was  born  in  1699,  and  always  spoke  of  the  build- 
ing as  a  powder-mill,  and  he  himself  remembered  that 'in  his 
boyhood,  or  about  1760,  it  was  used  as  a  hay  mow.  Another 
octogenarian,  John  Langley,  remembered  hearing  his  father  say, 
that  when  he  was  a  boy,  which  must  have  been  early  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  he  carried  corn  to  the  mill  to  be  ground. 

In  these  citations  it  will  be  observed  that  Arnold  does  not  call 
it  an  "old"  mill,  but  my  "stone-built  wind-mill."  At  the  time 
that  Pelham  made  his  will  the  mill  had  been  standing  not  less 
than  sixty-five  years,  and  hence  he  very  properly  designates  it 
"an  old  stone  wind-mill." 

Besides  the  historical  testimony  there  is  the  evidence  derived 
from  the  mill  itself.  The  composition  of  the  mortar  is  shells, 
sand  and  gravel.  In  the  year  1848  some  mortar  taken  from  an 
old  stone  house  in  Spring  street,  built  by  Henry  Bull,  in  1639, 
some  from  the  tomb  of  Governor  Arnold,  and  some  from  various 
other  buildings,  was  compared  with  the  mortar  of  the  old  mill, 
and  proved  to  be  identical  in  quality  and  character. 

The  object  of  constructing  the  mill  on  pillars  was,  that  the 
wind  having  a  free  passage  through,  there  was  no  eddy  wind 
caused  to  make  a  back  sail  and  thus  lessen  the  power.  The 
form  is  that  of  English  mills  of  the  same  period.  A  similar 
mill  was  erected,  in  1652,  in  Chesterton  Parish,  three  miles  from 
Leamington.  Whether  or  not  Arnold  came  from  Leamington, 
it  might  be  difficult  to  determine,  yet,  it  is  well  known  he  had  a 
farm  which  he  called  "Leamington  Farm."  Having  come  trom 
England  he  was  acquainted  with  the  forms  of  mills  then  in  use. 

The  poet  has  very  fittingly  spoken  of  the  attempt  to  Norseize 
this  mill  in  the  following  words: 

"Alas !  the  antiquarian's  dream  is  o'er, 

Thou  art  an  old  stone  wind-mill,  nothing  more !" 

A  skeleton  discovered  near  Fall  River,  in  1831,  has  been  im- 
pressed into  the  service  of  the  Northmen.  Had  it  been  discov- 


NORSE  REMAINS  IN  AMERICA.  43 

ered  after  the  contents  of  Indian  graves  were  fully  known,  it 
would  have  excited  but  little  comment,  and  the  knowledge  of  it 
would  have  been  largely  confined  among  archaeologists.  But 
its  having  been  unearthed  about  the  time  when  Norse  remains 
were  particularly  searched  out,  it  became  at  once  either  the 
skeleton  of  Thorwald  Ericson,  or  else  one  of  his  companions, 
notwithstanding  the  fart  that  no  implements  peculiarly  Norse 
were  found  in  conjunction  with  it.  The  Danish  authorities  were 
very  much  interested  in  it,  and  chemical  tests  were  brought  for- 
ward to  substantiate  the  claims  made  for  it. 

As  might  well  be  anticipated,  Prof.  R.  B.  Anderson  seizes 
upon  this  skeleton  as  an  evidence  of  his  theory.  Two  pages  of 
his  bock  are  devoted  to  it,  under  the  caption  "Thorvald  Erik- 
son."  No  doubt  appears  to  rankle  in  his  bosom.  He  intro- 
duces the  subject  by  saying,  "His  (Thorwald's)  death  and  burial 
also  gains  interest  in  another  respect,  for  in  the  year  1831  there 
was  found  in  the  vicinity  of  Fall  River,  Massachusetts,  a  skeleton 
n  armor,  and  many  of  the  circumstances  connected  with  it  are 
so  wonderful  that  it  might  indeed  seem  almost  as  though  it 
were  the  skeleton  of  this  very  Thorwald  Erikson!"* 

Much  having  been  written  and  said  about  this  discovery,  it 
finally  caught  the  eye  of  Longfellow,  who  attempted  to  immor- 
talize it  in  verse.  From  his  notes,  and  the  language  employed, 
he  seems  to  have  no  doubt  that  he  is  dealing  with  a  veritable 
Viking.  Undoubtedly  the  poet  is  an  authority  in  the  field  he  has 
chosen,  but  when  he  attempts  "archaeological  rhythm,"  his  words 
must  be  taken  with  allowance.  He  njakes  the  skeleton  say: 

"I  was  a  Viking  old!  "Far  in  the  Northern  Land, 

My  deeds,  though  manifold,  By  the  wild  Baltic's  strand, 

No  skald  in  song  has  told,  I,  with  my  childish  hand, 

No  saga  taught  thee!  Tamed  the  gerfalkon; 

Take  need,  that  in  thy  verse  And,  with  my  skates  fast  bound, 

Thou  dost  the  tale  rehearse,  Skimmed  the  half-frozen  sound. 

Else  dread  a  dead  man's  curse;  That  the  poor,  whimpering  hound 

For  this  I  sought  thee."  Trembled  to  walk  on!" 

This  skeleton  was  destroyed  by  fire  in  1843.  The  skull  was 
of  ordinary  size,  the  forehead  low,  beginning  to  retreat  at  not 
more  than  an  inch  from  the  nose;  the  head  conical,  and  larger 
behind  the  ears  than  in  front.  The  bones  of  the  feet  were 
missing,  but  the  hands  and  arms  were  small,  and  the  body  was 
apparently  that  of  a  person  below  the  middle  size.  With  it  was 
found  a  piece  of  copper  plate,  rather  thicker  than  sheathing 
copper,  which  had  been  suspended  from  the  neck.  Probably 
this  was  not  its  original  position,  for  there  were  no  marks  on 
the  breast  of  the  green  carbonate  with  which  parts  of  the  cop- 
per were  covered.  In  shape  it  was  like  a  carpenter's  saw,  but 
wanting  serrated  edges;  it  was  ten  inches  in  length,  six  or  seven 
inches  wide  at  the  top,  and  four  at  the  bottom;  the  lower  part 
was  broken,  indicating  it  had  been  still  longer.  The  edges  were 

•America  Not  Discovered  by  Columbus,  p.  75. 


44  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

smooth,  and  a  hole  was  pierced  in  the  top,  by  which  it  would 
appear  to  have  been  suspended  to  the  body  with  a  thong. 
Several  arrow-heads  of  copper  were  also  found,  about  an  inch 
and  a  half  long  by  an  inch  in  breadth  at  the  base,  and  having  a 
hole  in  the  center.  They  were  flat,  quite  sharp,  the  sides  con- 
cave, the  base  square,  and  of  the  same  thickness  of  the  breast- 
plate. Pieces  of  a  shaft  were  also  found.  What,caused  particular 
interest  was  a  belt,  composed  of  parallel  copper  tubes,  about  one 
hundred  in  number,  four  inches  in  length,  and  of  the  thickness 
of  an  ordinary  drawing  pencil.  These  tubes  were  thin  and 
exterior  to  others  of  wood,  through  each  of  which  passed  a 
leather  thong  and  tied  at  the  ends  to  a  long  thong  encircling  the 
body.  This  belt  or  thong  was  fastened  under  the  left  arm  by 
tying  the  ends  of  the  long  string  together,  and  passed  round  the 
breast  and  back  a  little  below  the  shoulder-blades.  The  copper 
was  much  decayed,  and  in  some  places  was  gone;  the  thongs 
and  wooden  tubes  were  preserved.  Nothing  else  was  found 
but  a  piece  of  coarse  cloth  or  matting  a  few  inches  square,  of 
the  thickness  of  sail-cloth.  The  flesh  was  preserved  wherever 
any  of  the  copper  touched  it. 

Illustrative  of  this  skeleton  with  its  accompanying  implements, 
Haven  has  cited  a  particular  narration  given  in  Brereton's  Brief 
and  True  Relation  of  the  Discovery  of  the  North  Part  of  Vir- 
ginia (New  England),'  by  Gosnold,  in  1602.  It  is  there  stated 
that  while  they  were  at  an  island,  which  has  since  been  identi- 
fied, and  lying  oft  the  coast  nearest  to  Fall  River,  the  natives 
came  to  them  from  the  mainland,  and  the  articles  they  brought 
are  thus  described:  "They  have  great  stores  of  copper,  some 
very  red  and  some  of  a  paler  color;  none  of  them  but  have 
chains,  ear-rings,  or  collars  of  this  metal;  they  head  some  of  the 
arrows  herewith,  much  like  our  broad  arrow-heads,  very  work- 
manly  made.  Their  chains  are  many  hollow  pieces  cemented 
together,  each  piece  of  the  bigness  of  one  of  our  reeds,  a  finger 
in  length,  ten  or  twelve  of  them  together  on  a  string,  which  they 
wear  about  their  necks;  these  collars  they  wear  about  their 
bodies  like  bandeliers,  a  handful  broad,  all  hollow  pieces  like  the 
others,  but  somewhat  shorter,  four  hundred  pieces  in  a  collar, 
very  fine  and  evenly  set  together.  Besides  these,  they  have 
large  drinking  cups,  made  like  skulls,  and  other  thin  plates  of 
copper  made  much  like  our  boar-spear  blades,  all  which  they 
so  little  esteem,  as  they  offered  their  fairest  collars  or  chains  for 
a  knife  or  such  like  trifle."* 

The  "Proceedings  of  the  American  Association  for  the 
Advancement  of  Science,"  for  1856,  contains  an  account  of 
alleged  runic  letters  appearing  on  a  ledge  of  hornblende,  on  the 
island  of  Monhegan,  off  the  coast  of  Maine.  Dr.  A.  E.  Hamlin, 
of  Bangor,  who  presented  the  paper,  suggested  that  the  inscrip- 

*  Archaeology  of  the  United  States,  p.  108. 


NORSE  REMAINS  IN  AMERICA.  45 

tion  is  the  work  of  "some  illiterate  Scandinavian,  whose  knowl- 
edge of  the  runic  form  was  very  imperfect."  A  copy  of  the 
inscription  was  forwarded  to  Copenhagen,  but  the  Danish  anti- 
quaries gave  no  interpretation,  but  contented  themselves  by 
observing:  "The  Indians  have,  without  doubt,  profited  in  various 
ways  by  their  intercourse  with  the  Northmen,  to  whom  they 
were  probably  indebted  for  much  knowledge;  and  it  is  ap- 
parently to  their  instruction,  acquired  in  this  manner,  that  we 
owe  several  of  their  sculptures  on  the  rocks  which  are  met 
within  their  regions." 

As  Prof.  Anderson  does  not  vouch  for  the  authenticity  of  this 
inscription,  and  as  De  Costa*  thinks  it  may  be  classed  with  the 
"Runamo  Rock,"  it  is  not  necessary  to  pursue  the  investigation 
any  further.  The  rejection  of  this  evidence  may  be  owing  to 
the  thoughtless  suggestion  of  Dr.  Hamlin  that  it  was  the  work 
of  "some  illiterate  Scandinavian."  The  term  applied  was  too 
offensive.  Had  he  declared  that  it  was  the  work  of  "some 
intelligent  Scandinavian,  and  the  characters  are  undoubted 
runes,"  then  Mohegan  Rock  would  have  occupied  a  conspicuous 
place  alongside  the  Dighton  Rock,  the  Round  Tower  and  the 
Skeleton  in  Armor. 

Human  credulity  might  further  be  illustrated,  in  this  matter, 
in  the  purported  discovery  ot  the  site  of  the  houses  built  by  Lief 
Ericson.  Up  to  date  this  may  be  recorded  as  the  latest  of  the 
finds.  So  delighted  were  the  advocates  over  this  purported 
find  that  they  presented  to  the  discoverer  a  picture  in  colors  of 
Liet's  house  in  process  of  building,  on  the  banks  of  Charles 
River,  at  flood-tide;  surmounting  an  inscription,  followed  by 
the  names  of  fifty-four  Scandinavian  societies,  supported  on  one 
side  by  a  figure  of  Lief,  and  on  the  other  by  an  Indian  maiden, 
with  the  surroundings  of  the  New  World;  the  whole  set  in  a 
frame  of  pear-wood,  elaborately  carved  in  illustration  of  the 
Sagas  and  Scandinavian  mythology.  To  use  the  language  of 
this  new  discoverer,  Prof.  Horsford,  the  ship  of  the  Norse 
adventurers  "grounded  in  ebb-tide,  on  soft  bottom,  against  Fort 
Point,  opposite  Noddle's  Island  (East  Boston),  as  one  sees  on 
the  pilot  chart  of  Boston  Harbor,"  and  from  this  point,  at  flood- 
tide  the  ship  floated  oft"  itself  into  "the  ancient  Boston  Back 
Bay-"f  The  houses  he  locates  on  the  eastern  slope  of  Mount 
Auburn.  Accompanying  the  pamphlet  is  a  map  showing  the 
exact  course  of  Liet's  ship.  The  d.scovery  is  based  solely  on 
the  relation  of  the  Vineland  Sagas,  which  we  have  given 
in  Chapter  III.  Our  author  boldly  declares  that  he  expected  to 
find  there  sites,  and  had  located  them  before  he  set  out  in  the 
search  for  them.  He  found  what  he  was  looking  for,  and  what 
he  had  determined  on  finding.  Having  found  them,  he  looks 
into  the  past  and  goes  into  rhapsody  and  exclaims:  "What  a 

*Pre-Columbian  Discovery,  p.  67. 

tHorsford'B  "Norse  Discovery  of  America,"  p.  13. 


46  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

fortunate  circumstance  that  there  were  so  many  of  Norse  blood 
and  habits,  residents,  successively  in  the  same  houses."*  Very 
fortunate  indeed!  It  has  been  of  incalculable  benefit  to  the 
whole  Norse  and  English  speaking  race! 

The  author  treats  us  to  a  picture  of  a  tablet,  preserved  in  the 
Museum  of  the  Essex  Institute  at  Salem,  and  declares  his  belief 
that  it  is  to  "be  regarded  as  a  pictorial  record  of  the  repairs  of 
Thorwald's  ship  at  the  extemporized  ship  yard  on  Cape  Cod,  in 
the  year  1004.  It  exhibits  the  lines  ot  skids  and  other  con- 
veniences for  hauling  up  the  vessel,  to  make  the  bottom  accessi- 
ble, and  the  old  keel  set  upon  the  neck."f  This  tablet  is  a 
piece  of  slate  about  four  inches  long,  found  in  conjunction  with 
a  human  skeleton,  a  brass  shield,  and  what  appeared  to  be  a 
fragment  of  a  sword — all  taken  from  a  grave  on  the  north  shore 
of  Massachusetts  Bay.  There  are  no  runes  on  the  slate.  The 
markings  bear  no  resemblance  to  anything  known.  To  say 
that  it  represents  a  ship  being  hauled  up  in^order  to  perfect  its 
keel  is  an  exceedingly  extravagant  stretch  of  the  imagination, 
to  say  the  least. 

Our  author,  in  the  last  place,  turns  philologist  and  proves  satis- 
factorily— to  his  own  mind — that  the  word  "America"  is  Norse. 
"The  utterance  of  Norse  forms  of  the  name,  as  Eirikr,  ^Erekr, 
Eyrikur,  suggests  to  a  listner,  Erika,  which  needs  only  the  prefix 
?#,  one  of  the  features  of  speech  due  to  imperfect  vocal  develop- 
ment, remarked  among  American  aboriginal  races,  and  especially 
among  the  Indian  tribes  of  the  region  of  Norumbega  (Vineland), 
to  become  Em-erika,  or  not  remotely  America,  the  name  which 
the  continent,  as  I  conceive,  has  appropriately  borne.";}; 

This  method  of  treating  philology  is  enough  to  cause  the  bones 
of  Sir  William  Jones  to  turn  over  in  their  grave.  It  appears  to 
have  been  inspired  by  an  article  from  the  pen  of  Jules  Marcou, 
published  in  the  Smithsonian  Report  for  1888.  This  article 
attempts  to  prove  that  the  word  "America"  is  a  name  indigenous 
to  the  New  World,  and  derived  from  a  tribe  of  Indians  called 
"Amerriques,"  inhabiting  the  mountains  Sierra  Amerrique,  which 
form  the  cordillera  between  Lake  Nicaragua  and  the  Mosquito 
coast,  in  the  province  of  Chontales,  Nicaragua. 

Speaking  of  this  article,  Mr.  Horsford  says:  "How  the  name 
America  came  to  be  adopted  has  been  consummately  treated  by 
Professor  Jules  Marcon."§  That  the  name  America  "perpetuates 
the  claims  of  Erik  as  discoverer  when  he  landed  on  Greenland 
in  982."!)  In  other  words,  the  name  America  is  but  another 
term  for  Erik  the  Red;  that  Erik  the  Red's  name  has  been  per- 
petuated in  a  tribe  of  American  Indians. 

One  cannot  help  but  admire  the  ease  with  which  all  problems 
are  solved!  In  order  to  sustain  the  Norse  discovery  ot  America, 
the  Eskimo  must  be  brought  down  from  their  high  northern 

•Horsford's  "Norse  Discovery  of  America,"  p.  15.       ilbid,  p.  17.       llbid,  p  29. 
Ubid,  p,  27.       |1  Ibid,  p.  28. 


NORSE  REMAINS  IN  AMERICA.  47 

latitude  to  Cape  Cod  in  Massachusetts,  and  a  tribe  of  Indians 
dwelling  in  the  mountains  of  Nicaragua  must  be  transplanted  to 
the  same  point,  that  due  notice  and  reverence  might  be  given 
to  Leif  Ericson!  It  is  a  beautiful  theory!  It  is  a  transcendant 
fact!  With  the  facts  so  clearly  set  forth  and  so  satisfactorily 
proved,  "it  is  necessary  for  the  truth,  as  to  the  (Norse)  discov- 
ery of  America,  to  be  established  immediately."* 

A  candid  view  of  the  matter  would  lead  an  intelligent  mind 
to  the  conclusion  that  the  Norse  advocates,  in  their  great  zeal, 
have  trifled  entirely  too  much  with  the  subject,  in  placing  stress 
on  these  so-called  American  evidences.  However,  they  are 
acute  enough  to  know  that  -if  the  Norse  had  been  in  America, 
made  settlements,  and  continued  for  a  period  of  three  hundred 
or  more  years,  as  has  been  claimed,  corroborative  proof 
would  be  forthcoming.  Greenland  affords  it,  and  America 
must  not  be  deficient.  If  it  fails  to  yield  evidence,  then  the 
whole  theory  must  be  changed.  In  lieu  of  better  testimony, 
that  which  has  been  seized  upon  must  continue  to  do  service. 


*Shipley's  "Icelandic  Discoverers,"  p.  14. 


48  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 


CHAPTER  V. 


ODDS  AND  ENDS. 

Insuperable  difficulties  attend  every  step  in  the  demands  pilt 
forth  by  the  Norse  claimants.  One  asserts  the  Norse  were  the 
original  discoverers  and  should  immediately  be  recognized  as 
such,  while  another  admits  there  were  prior  discoveries  of  the 
'continent.  When  the  briefs  of  the  claimants  are  compared,  one 
with  the  other,  contradictions  and  gross  assumptions  are  seen 
to  predominate.  One  will  declare  the  Sagas  to  be  simple  and 
unaffected,  and  the  only  reliable  histories  the  earth  has  fallen 
heir  to,  while  another  seeks  to  edit  and  twist  them  into  the  re- 
quired shape — thus  reminding  one  of  the  famous  robber  Pro- 
crustes. 

Admitting  that  the  Sagas  teach  all  that  is  claimed  for  them, 
what  advantage  was  it  to  the  human  race?  Is  it  not  a  fact  that 
the  discovery  amounted  to  nothing?  Is  it  not  also  a  fact  that 
when  Queen  Margaret  prohibited  trade  with  Greenland,  it 
would  have  stimulated  commerce  between  that  colony  and  the 
one  in  America?  To  offset  the  worthlessness  of  the  alleged 
Norse  discovery,  it  is  asserted  that  without  it  Columbus  would 
have  known  nothing  of  the  New  World.  Even  if  this  be  ad- 
mitted, then  more  is  due  to  the  Irish  than  to  the  Norse.  De 
Costa  declares  that  the  Icelandic  chronicles  distinctly  affirm  that 
"half  a  century  before  the  voyage  of  Erik,  a  great  country  was 
known  at  the  west,  being  called  Ireland  the  Great.'  It  would 
seem  that  this  country  was  first  reached  by  the  Irish,  whose 
prior  discovery  was  concealed  by  the  Icelanders.  The  Irish 
had  described  it,  evidently,  as  a  land  of  verdure,  while  the  Saga 
says  that  Erik  applied  the  name  of  'Greenland'  to  the  part  he 
visited,  not  from  any  particular  fitness,  but  from  motives  of 
policy,  saying  that  'men  would  be  persuaded  to  go  to  a  land 
with  so  good  a  name.'  Possibly  the  term  'Greenland'  was  orig- 
inally applied  to  the  whole  of  North  America,  as  were  often 
names  that  finally  came  to  have  a  locaUmeaning."*  In  the 
mutual  admiration  society  the  Irish  should  not  be  crowded  out. 
Give  them  a  chance.  Let  them  help  fight  this  battle  as  well  as 
the  battles  of  all  countries  except  their  own ! 

Unfortunately  the  reference  to  Ireland  the  Great  involves  us 
in  another  difficulty.  In  the  above  quotation  De  Costa  would 
have  us  believe  it  was  Greenland,  while  Prof.  Rafn  held  it  was 

*Pre-Columbian  Discovery,  p.  33. 


ODDS  AND  ENDS.  49 

America.*  This  disagreement  between  the  two  editors  would 
throw  great  doubt  on  the  Norse  theory.  It  Prof.  Rafn  is  cor- 
rect, then  the  Norse  did  not  discover  the  continent,  but  took 
advantage  of  the  achievement  of  the  Irish.  II  we  argue  after 
the  same  methods,  then  the  honor' must  be  accorded  to  the  Irish, 
while  the  Norse  are  shorn  of  all  the  glory  there  was  in  it. 

Those  who  have  presumed  to  edit  the  sagas  must  also  edit 
the  letter  of  Columbus,  so  as  to  make  it  appear  that  he  was 
acquainted  with  the  voyages  of  Erik,  Leif  and  Thorfinn  Karl- 
sefne.  Prof.  R.  B.  Anderson  teaches  that  Columbus  obtained 
from  the  writings  of  Adam  ot  Bremen  the  Norse  discovery  of 
America,  and  this  information  induced  him  to  go  to  Iceland, 
where  the  "Icelanders  must  have  told  him,  as  they  state  in  their 
Sagas,  that  far  to  the  south  of  Vinland  was  Irland-it-Mikla,  or 
Great  Ireland;  that  this  Great  Ireland  extended  certainly  as  far 
south  as  the  present  Florida,  and  hence  his  shortest  and  most 
pleasant  route  would  be  to  sail  about  due  west  from  Spain. "f 
DeCosta  says  that  "Columbus  knew  of  the  westward  voyages 
of  the  Icelanders  is  sufficiently  evident.  He  clearly  believed,  as 
the  Norsemen  did,  namely,  that  Greenland  was  an  extension  ot 
Norway,  and  that  Vinland  lay  contiguous,  while  what  he  de- 
sired was  to  reach  the  eastern  coast  of  Asia.":}:  Mrs.  Shipley 
emphatically  says:  "The  fact  that  the  rumors  of  these  vast 
discoveries  in  the  west  reached  every  seaport  in  Southern 
Europe,  as  well  as  the  Eternal  City;  the  fact  that  Gudrid,  the 
wife  of  Karlsefne,  visited  Rome  after  her  three  years'  sojourn 
in  Vinland  ;  the  fact  that  she  narrated  these  experiences  at 
length  to  the  holy  fathers;  the  fact  that  Rome  had  appointed 
bishops  to  both  Greenland  and  Vinland;  the  fact  that  Columbus, 
an  Italian  by  birth,  and  naturally  aware  of  these  important 
events,  went  to  Iceland  in  order  to  pursue  the  investigations,  to 
which  all  this  had  given  him  the  clue.  After  his  visit  to  Iceland 
he  made  out  to  find  America,  as  any  one  else  could  have  found 
it,  after  obtaining  definite  directions. "§ 

The  following  is  quoted  from  Beamish:  "Having  had  access 
to  the  archives  of  the  island,  and  ample  opportunity  of  convers- 
ing with  the  learned  there  through  the  medium  of  the  Latin 
language,  he  might  easily  have  obtained  a  complete  knowledge 
of  the  discoveries  of  the  Northmen — sufficient,  at  least,  to  con- 
firm his  belief  in  the  existence  of  a  western  continent."! 

Quotations  to  the  same  purport  could  be  greatly  extended, 
but  these  are  sufficient.  On  what  basis  do  these  affirmations, 
declarations  and  assumptions  rest?  There  is  none  other  than 
the  solitary  letter  of  Columbus  himself,  which  was  preserved 
by  his  son.  This  vague  letter  the  son  cites  in  the  biography  of 
his  father:  "In  the  month  of  February,  in  the  year  1477, 1  sailed 


*Pre  Columbian  Discovery,  p.  160. 

1  America  Not  Discovered  by  Columbus,  pp.  13  15. 

JPre-Columbian  Discovery,  p.  56. 

((Icelandic  Discoveries,  p.  69.          |Ibid.,  106. 


50  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

one  hundred  leagues  beyond  the  island  of  Tile,  the  southern 
portion  of  which  is  seventy-three  degrees  removed  from  the 
equinoctial,  and  not  sixty-three,  as  some  will  have  it;  nor  is  it 
situated  within  the  line  which  includes  Ptolemy's  west,  but  is 
much  further  to  the  westward;  and  to  this  island,  which  is  as 
large  as  England,  the  English  come  with  their  wares,  especially 
those  from  Bristol.  And  at  the  time  I  went  thither  the  sea  was 
not  trozen,  although  the  tides  there  are  so  great  that  in  some 
places  they  rose  twenty-six  fathoms,  and  fell  as  much.  It  is, 
indeed,  the  fact  that  that  Tile,  of  which  Ptolemy  makes  men- 
tion, is  situated  where  he  describes  it,  and  by  the  moderns  this 
is  called  Frislanda." 

If  Tile  is  Iceland,  and  Columbus  sailed  one  hundred  leagues 
beyond,  he  must  have  entered  Greenland  a  distance  of  not  less 
than  fifty  miles.  But  of  this  there  is  no  mention.  Friesland  is 
one  of  the  most  northern  provinces  of  the  Netherlands.  He 
went  farther  north,  and  it  is  more  than  probable  to  the  northern 
part  of  Norway.  Having  sailed  west  three  hundred  miles  he 
covered  half  the  distance  to  Iceland.  But  upon  supposition  he 
went  to  Iceland,  what  proof  is  there  he  saw  the  Sagas  ?  The 
evidence  of  the  sagas  need  not  be  rehearsed;  for  as  has  been 
seen  the  Codex  Flatoyensis  was  discovered  in  private  hands  and 
did  not  belong  to  the  State.  There  is  not  a  scintilla  of  evidence 
that  this  Codex,  in  1477,  was  known  beyond  the  actual  limits  of 
its  possessor,  or  even  that  it  had  a  possessor  at  that  time.  Even 
if  the  manuscripts  were  in  the  archives  of  the  country,  it  is  not 
at  all  likely  that  the  attention  of  a  stranger,  more  especially  one 
speaking  a  foreign  language,  would  be  called  to  these  fireside 
tijrfes  and  legends. 

/  As  has  been  noticed,  the  assertion  is  made  that  Gudrid  nar- 
/rated  her  experiences  to  the  holy  fathers,  and  that  rumors  of 
these  discoveries  had  reached  every  seaport  in  Southern 
Europe.  The  saga  says  she  "went  to  the  South."  On  this  De 
Costa  has  an  extended  note.  "It  is  understood  she  (Gudrid) 
went  to  Rome.  It  may  be  asked  why  she  did  not  spread  the 
news  of  her  son's  voyage  in  those  parts  of  Europe  whither  she 
went,  and  make  known  the  discovery  of  the  New  World.  To 
this  it  may  again  be  replied,  that  the  Icelanders  had  no  idea  that 
they  had  found  a  New  World,  and  did  not  appreciate  the  value 
of  their  geographical  knowledge.  Besides,  there  is  nothing  to 
prove  that  Gudrid  and  others  who  went  to  Europe  at  this 
period,  did  not  make  known  the  Icelandic  discoveries.  At  that 
time  no  interest  was  taken  in  such  subjects,  and  therefore  we 
have  little  right  to  expect  to,  find  traces  of  discussion  in  relation 
to  what,  among  a  very  small  class,  would  be  regarded,  at  the 
best,  as  a  curious  story."*' 

Columbus  fitted  himself  thoroughly  for  the  great  undertak- 

Pre-Columbian  Discovery,  p.  156. 


ODDS  AND  ENDS.  51 

ing  he  was  destined  to  perform.  From  his  studies  he  arrived 
at  the  conclusion  that  the  world  was  a  sphere,  but  underesti- 
mated its  size,  while  over-estimating  the  extent  of  Asia.  He 
believed  there  was  a  western  route  to  India,  and  determined  to 
discover  it.  He  first  applied  to  the  Senate  of  Genoa,  his  native 
city.  His  proposals  were  rejected.  He  next  turned  to  John  II 
of  Portugal,  but  that  monarch,  through  the  advice  of  the  Bishop 
of  Ceuta,  dealt  treacherously  wiih  him.  Upon  discovering  the 
dishonorable  transaction,  he  secretly  left  Lisbon,  and  dispatched 
his  brother,  Bartholomew,  to  England  with  letters  for  Henry 
VII,  to  whom  he  had  communicated  his  idea.  He  next  proposed 
his  plans  to  the  Duke  of  Medina  Sidonia,  who  deemed  them 
impractical  and  visionary-  He  then  presented  his  plans  to  the 
Duke  of  Medina  Celi,  who  gave  him  great  encouragement,  en- 
tertained him  for  two  years,  and  even  determined  to  furnish  him 
with  three  or  lour  caravals;  but  was  finally  deterred  through 
the  belief  that  such  an  expedition  should  be  under  the  patronage 
of  a  sovereign.  He  wrote  to  Isabella,  and  at  her  bidding  Co- 
lumbus repaired  to  the  court  at  Cordova.  Here  he  was  kindly 
received,  but  neither  Isabella  nor  Ferdinand  had  time  to  listen 
to  him,  owing  to  the  struggle  then  going  on  with  the  Moors. 
He  followed  the  court  to  Salamanca,  and  after  surmounting 
many  difficulties  obtained  an  audience  with  the  king.  The  mat- 
ter was  referred  to  Fernando  de  Talavera,  who,  in  1487,  sum- 
moned a  junta  mostly  composed  of  ecclesiastics,  prejudiced  and 
loth  to  abandon  their  pretensions  to  knowledge,  which  decided 
that  his  project  was  vain  and  impractical  and  that  the  sover- 
eigns should  abandon  it.  After  encountering  many  other  dis- 
couragements, an  agreement  was  entered  into  with  the  Spanish 
sovereigns,  which  was  signed  on  April  17,  1492. 

In  presenting  his  plans  and  arguments  before  the  different 
courts  and  those  high  in  authority,  not  once  did  he  allude  to  the 
discovery  of  Leif  Ericson.  When  before  the  junta,  Columbus 
presented  his  arguments,  and  the  ecclesiastics  overwhelmed 
him  with  biblical  texts,  there  was  a  great  opportunity  to  present 
the  conclusive  evidence  of  L/ief's  discovery,  and  the  fact  that 
the  pope  of  Rome  had  appointed  a  bishop  for  Vinland.  Most 
certainly  would  Columbus  have  thus  availed  himself,  had  he 
possessed  the  knowledge.  Again,  the  fact  of  his  route  across 
the  Atlantic  cannot  be  reconciled  with  a  previous  knowledge  of 
the  one  from  Greenland  to  Vinland.  His  route  would  have 
borne  greatly  to  the  northwest. 

Much  irrelative  matter  has  been  dragged  into  the  discussion 
by  the  Norse  advocates.  It  should  here  be  touched  upon  in 
order  to  show  the  true  animus  of  these  erratic  theorists.  It  will 
be  an  illustration  of  their  ability  to  weigh  evidence  in  other 
matters  as  well  as  in  that  which  they  have  particularly  chosen. 

The  Norse  character  has  been  pompously  set  forth  and  its 
pagan  ethics  extolled.  Great  benefits  would  result  in  "accord- 


52  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

ing  to  Iceland  its  full  due,  of  emulating  its  ireedom  and  enlight- 
ment  during  the  days  when  it  was  a  flourishing  republic,  and 
before  it  became  christianized."*  Norse  ethics  "have  been  the 
source  of  infinite  good."f  The  literature  of  Iceland  presents 
"in  many  respects  an  ideal  civilization. ";{:  The  Scandinavian 
North  has  "individually  and  collectively  sustained  the  most 
brilliant  role  that  has  ever  been  acted  in  Europe,  or  in  the 
world.  The  assumption  of  Christian  humility  and 

weakness  so  completely  destroyed  their  ancient  pride  that  they 
were  not  capable  of  reasserting  themselves  and  gaining  their 
former  rank."  §  These  exalted  ideas  are  supposed  to  be  culled 
from  the  sagas.  If  the  sagas  were  actually  silent  as  to  the 
moral  character  of  the  people  in  pagan  times,  the  red-handed 
Erik  and  .the  treacherous  Freydis,  who  not  only  caused  the 
death  of  so  many  innocent  men,  but  with  her  own  hand  butch- 
ered five  women,  solely  for  the  sake  of  gain,  should  put  to  shame 
such  declarations.  The  sagas  are  not  silent  on  the  moral  char- 
acteristics of  the  people,  and  whosoever  reads  the  accounts 
therein  contained  must  wonder  if  they  had  within  U  em  the  di- 
vine image.  The  feuds  of  the  Icelanders  were  notorious.  The 
degree  of  a  man's  civilization  may  be  measured  according  to 
his  ideas  of  woman.  Saxo  Grammaticus,  the  ablest  of  all  the 
sagamen,  says  :  "Thus  you  will  see  the  worth  of  a  woman's 
word.  They  are  chaff  before  the  wind,  and  change  like  the 
billows  of  the  sea.  Who  can  rely  on  a  woman's  heart  that  al- 
ters like  a  flower  shedding  its  leaves,  or  as  the  seasons  change, 
obliterating  each  other's  traces  ?"  In  matters  of  marriage  there 
was  little  love-making.  The  wishes  of  the  women  were  seldom 
consulted,  and  they  were  disposed  of  to  the  best  of  advantage 
by  their  fathers  or  guardians.  Even  the  very  word  (brud-kaup) 
means  "wife-deal,"  in  the  sense  of  a  sale.  On  the  marriage 
day  it  was  bad  taste  not  to  be  drunk  and  find  a  bed  on  the 
rushes  on  the  floor.  Solid  drinking  continued  from  Wednesday 
until  Saturday.  Polygamy  was  also  practiced.  Divorce  was 
frequent.  In  the  Laxdaeler's  saga — one  of  the  complex  sagas 
of  West  Iceland — examples  are  given  showing  on  what  slight 
grounds  divorce  could  be  obtained.  Gudrun,  in  989,  at  the  age 
of  fifteen,  was  married  to  the  Thorwald  of  Garpsdolen.  Be- 
cause she  was  not  consulted  in  regard  to  certain  personal  orna- 
ments she  formed  an  acquaintance  with  Thord  Ingunsson,  and 
through  his  advice  she  made  her  husband  a  shirt  with  a  large 
opening  in  the  neck  Now  it  was  the  law  if  a  woman  dressed 
as  a  man,  or  vice  versa,  it  was  a  reasonable  ground  for  a  di- 
vorce. Thorwald  wore  the  shirt,  which  was  so  low  as  to  ex- 
pose the  nipples  of  his  breast.  A  divorce  was  declared.  This 
same  Thorwald  Ingunsson  had  a  wife  nicknamed  Brok  Aude, 
because  she  wore  breeches  like  a  man.  So  Thorwald  declared 
himself  divorced,  and  shortly  after  married  Gudrun. 

'Icelandic  Discoverers,  p.  188.       flbid.,  p.  192.       ilbid.,  p.  165.       glbid.,  p.  195. 


ODDS  AND  ENDS.  53 

The  Vikings  were  lawless  in  a  bad  sense,  and  their  expedi- 
tions by  land  and  sea  in  quest  of  plunder  were  characterized  by 
a  bloodthirsty  savagery  of  a  vicious  type.  The  women  who 
accompanied  these  expeditions  distinguished  themselves  by  a 
fierce  cruelty.  They  adopted  a  mode  of  life  and  a  diet  which 
suited  few  men,  or  even  beasts  of  prey.  The  older  the  records 
the  darker  the  picture.  They  ate  nothing  but  raw  cured  meat 
and  slept  out  of  doors.  The  most  atrocious  cruelties  were 
practiced  by  them,  and  they  spared  neither  man,  woman  nor 
child.  After  awhile  they  applied  a  certain  code  of  laws  in  which 
it  was^agreed'that  they  should  not  plunder  their  own  coasts  or 
merchant-ships  belonging  to  their  countrymen,  unless  it  was  in 
a  case  of  a  family  feud.  They  would  start  out  in  their  piratical 
expeditions  when  the  cuckoo  was  first  heard  and  return  as  late 
as  the  autumnal  storms.  The  Hebrides  were  a  favorite  cruis- 
ing-ground.  Their  merciless  ravages  along  the  coasts  of  Scot- 
land have  been  given  by  Skene*  and  need  not  be  here  repeated. 
Their  irruption  into  Ireland  has  been  frequently  retold.  In  794, 
when  paganism  must  have  been  in  its  purity,  they  utterly  laid 
waste  the  Western  Isles  of  Scotland  and  plundered  the  church 
of  lona.*  They  were  not  finally  expelled  until  the  crushing  de- 
feat they  suffered  at  the  hands  of  the  Scots,  under  Alexander 
III,  at  the  battle  of  Largs,  fought  in  1263,  when  king  Haco's 
broken  army  and  fleet  were  forced  to  retire. 

Recuring  again  to  the  sagas,  we  find  the  Volsungasaga — 
probably  written  in  Iceland  about  the  close  of  the  thirteenth 
century — among  many  other  things  gives  an  extended  account 
of  king  Atle  and  Gudrun,  his  wife,  which  is  a  story  abounding 
in  atrocities.  Among  other  things  the  record  tells  that  Gudrun 
cuts  the  throats  of  her  own  sons,  then  takes  their  skulls  and  fills 
them  with  wine  mixed  with  their  blood,  and  gives  the  same  to 
Atle  to  drink.  She  also  takes  their  hearts  and  covered  the 
same  with  honey  and  gave  it  to  her  husband  to  eat.  Not  con- 
tent with  this  atrocity  she  set  fire  to  the  hall  and  destroyed  King 
Atle  and  his  men.  The  records  of  history  nowhere  recite  a 
crime  so  fearful  as  that  practiced  by  the  wife  of  King  Atle.  The 
sagas  abound  in  stories  of  implacable  hate,  and  thirst  for  re- 
venge. A  thirst  for  blood  was  an  attribute  of  the  people.  A 
man  was  murdered  in  cold  blood  for  a  slight  provocation.  It 
was  proper  and  fit  to  waylay  or  stab  a  foe  in  his  bed,  or  burn 
him  to  death  in  his  house.  In  the  saga  of  Halfred  it  was  re- 
lated that  Sokke,  a  Viking,  burnt  the  house  of  Thorwald,  a  man 
living  in  Norway.  The  latter  demanded  to  know  why  he  was 
injured.  Sokke  replied  that  his  intention  was  to  burn  him  and 
his  alive,  and  to  annex  his  goods  after  Viking  rules.  According 
to  the  saga,  this  appears  to  have  been  a  sufficient  answer. 

One  of  the  principal  amusements  of  this  people  was  horse- 

*Celtic,  Scotland,  Vol  I,  pp.  302,  311,  327,  339,  347;  also  Chronicles  of  the  Picts  and 
Scots,  pp.  8,  9,  330,  361,  363.  *lbid.,  Vol.  I,  p.  304. 


54  PRE-COLUMBIAN  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

fighting.  Horses  were  reared  purposely  for  fighting,  and  foals 
having  long  teeth  were  specially  selected.  The  places  selected 
for  such  exhibitions  were  flat  meadows,  with  some  rising  ground 
near,  on  which  spectators,  and  in  particular  the  women,  could 
sit  and  see  what  passed.  When  the  horses  rose  on  their  hind 
legs  and  began  to  bite,  each  trainer  was  allowed  to  use  a  staft 
to  encourage  his  horse.  Often  bloody  affrays  grew  out  of  these 
sports.  In  xthe  Njal  saga  it  is  related  that  Starkad,  who  owned 
a  good  fighting-horse,  had  three  quarrelsome  sons.  These 
sons  challenged  Gunnar  to  a  horse  fight  in  order  to  involve  him 
in  a  bloody  feud,  which  they  accomplished.  The  Gretti  and 
the  Vigaglum  sagas  give  accounts  of  blood  feuds  growing  out 
of  horse  fighting. 

It  is  neither  necessary  nor  pleasant  to  carry  these  citations 
any  farther.  Their  natures  were  more  savage  than  that  of  any 
North  American  Indian  at  the  time  of  the  discovery.  Into  this 
mass  ot  savagery  Christianity  was  introduced  by  two  really 
pagan  kings,  who  thought  they  had  become  Christians.  They 
propagated  it  with  a  vengeance.  Olav  Tryggveson  and  Olav 
Haraldson,  when  kings  of  Norway,  suppressed  heathenism 
with  a  strong  hand.  They  sought  to  convince  the  stiff-necked 
heathens  by  either  cutting  off  their  heads  or  gouging  out  their 
eyes,  and  both  kings  sowed  priests  broadcast  over  their  domin- 
ions. Christianity  had  a  long  and  patient  struggle  with  these 
people.  Their  wild  and  barbarous  natures  were  subdued.  Their 
better  natures  have  been  called  into  activity.  The  Norwegians 
and  Icelanders  of  to-day  fare  far  better  than  their  ancestors  did 
in  saga  or  pre-saga  times.  They  pursue  the  paths  of  peace, 
cultivate  knowledge  and  build  up  their  homes  with  the  reason- 
able assurance  they  will  remain  protected.  Instead  of  gaining 
renown  as  a  pirate,  the  Norseman  becomes  ot  great  advantage 
in  the  progress  of  science  and  art. 

The  next  and  last  point  to  be  considered  in  these  papers  is 
the  extravagant  claim  of  our  debt  of  gratitude  to  the  Northmen. 
We  have  already  quoted,  in  Chapter  I,  from  DeCosta.  It  is 
here  repeated:  "In  vindicating  the  Northmen  we  honor  those 
who  not  only  gave  us  the  first  knowledge  possessed  ot  the 
American  continent,  but  to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  much 
beside  that  we  esteem  valuable.  In  reality,  we  fable  in  a  great 
measure  when  we  speak  of  our  'Saxon  inheritance.'  It  is  rather 
from  the  Northmen  that  we  have  derived  our  vital  energy,  our 
freedom  of  thought,  and,  in  a  measure  we  do  not  yet  suspect, 
our  strength  of  speech."*  This  was  probably  inspired  by 
Samuel  Lang,  the  translator  of  the  Heimskringla.  What  he 
says  is  given  at  length  by  Prof.  R.  B.  Anderson.f  "All  that 
men  hope  for  of  good  government  and  future  improvement  in 
their  physical  and  moral  condition — all  that  civilized  men  enjoy 

*Pre-Columbian  Discovery,  p.  7,  taken  from  "Heimskringla,"  Vol.  I  ,  p.  7. 
tAmerica  Not  Discovered  by  Columbus,  pp.  98-100. 


ODDS  AND  ENDS.  55 

at  this  day  of  civil,  religious  and  political  liberty — the  British 
constitution,  representative  legislature,  the  trial  by  jury,  security  • 
of  property,  freedom  oi  mind  and  person,  the  influence  of  pub- 
lic opinion  over  the  conduct  of  public  affairs,  the  Reformation, 
the  liberty  of  the  press,  the  spirit  of  the  age — all  that  is  or  has 
been  of  value  to  man  in  modern  times  as  a  member  of  society, 
either  in  Europe  or  in  America,  may  be  traced  to  the  spark 
left  burning  upon  our  shores  by  the  Norwegian  barbarians."* 
This  is  a  most  astonishing  declaration  to  be  made  by  a  sane 
man.  No  one  would  make  it  who  was  acquainted  with  history, 
unless  he  had  an  utter  disregard  for  the  truth.  Any  man  com- 
petent to  trace  "all  that  civilized  men  enjoy  at  this  day  of  civil, 
religious  and  political  liberty"  to  a  "spark  left  burning"  by  a 
band  of  pirates,  deserves  to  be  classed  as  a  greater  discoverer 
than  Christopher  Columbus.  The  world,  its  teachings,  the 
improvements  and  the  civilization,  prior  to  that  time,  outside  of 
Scandinavia,  is  a  blank  so  far  as  our  present  welfare  is  con- 
cerned !  The  struggle  of  the  ages  resulted  in  nothing.  Man- 
kind owes  no  debt  of  gratitude  save  to  the  spark  left  burning  by 
a  band  of  northern  sea-rovers.  It  must  have  inspired  Martin 
Luther,  for  the  reformation  was  due  to  it.  What  is  the  proof  of 
this  extravagant  claim  ?  Exactly  the  same  as  the  great  bulk  of 
declarations  put  forth  in  behalf  of  this  Norse  theory.  Simply 
Nothing.  There  is  not  a  single  subject  discussed  during  the 
last  twenty-five  years  that  so  abounds  in  unwarranted  assertions, 
unsupported  declarations,  and  the  making  of  mountains  out  of 
mole-hills,  as  this  Norse  business.  But  the  zeal  thrown  into  the 
subject  seems  to  have  made  them  blind  to  the  facts  and  the 
teachings  of  history.  If  the  same  methods  were  resorted  to  in 
order  to  show  the  contrary  on  this  subject,  invective  would  be 
called  forth  and  harsh  epithets  applied.  The  charge  of  being 
unscrupulous  would  be  hurled  without  any  qualification.  It  is 
not  to  be  implied  that  the  intent  is  here  to  cast  opprobrious 
words  upon  the  advocates;  for  it  is  fully  recognized  that  their 
zeal  has  outstripped  their  judgement. 

*No  wonder  the  mandate  has  gone  forth  that  "Americans  are  to  put  on  the  Norse 
armor  and  seal  the  glorious  work  for  universal  liberty  that  their  ancestors  have  be- 
queathed to  them ! ''  Icelandic  Discoverers,  p.  57. 


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